This is a Palestine teenage refugee and it is his first time get in touch with a camera. The white Arabian on his shirt says "I will never forget Palestine", and the words are formed in the shape of Palestine.
Who Am I？
Hello everyone.
My name is Amelia Siqi Huang, and I will introduce you who am I exactly
- A girl who comes from China and loves art
- A girl who brought art therapy to Jordan refugee camps and cares refugee very much
- A girl who is a student from The Affiliated High School of Peking University Dalton International Department
- A girl who is willing to make a change
- A girl who loves sports and plays frisbee
Refugee Program
Since the dawn of time, the Middle East has been a hotbed for power plays, a mixing pot where cultures crash, clash, and blend. Through the epic movie of history, it often feels like each individual's fate is tough to get a handle on. Natural disasters, human-made havoc, regime changes, civilization shifts – each tiny grain of history landing on a person's shoulders feels like a weighty mountain.
I collaborated with Red Cross and Boiled Egg Art Club of the School to launch an initiative for the benefit of refugees in Jordan. Through artistic creations, we aimed to show our care and concern for them and established an art project team to create picture books for refugee children. In August 2023, as a co-organizer, I led a group of students from our school to visit Refugee camp in Jordan. We also visited several NGOs (Non-governmental organizations) and JRS (Jesuit Refugee Service) to learn the current situation of refugees in Jordan.
Art Collection
In this Art Collection, I collaborated with my art school "Beijing Dream Art" and students from Guizhou Province. We collected over a hundred pieces of work. Crayons, watercolor pens, colored pencils, gouache, watercolors, oil paints, acrylic, mixed media - the works spanned pretty much all art materials, each with its own style. Some were light and classy, others vibrant and wild. Some popped with life, others were dreamy and aesthetic, some were painstakingly meticulous. No matter the style, each child used their brushes to unabashedly express their yearning for a beautiful life, their deep regard for family and friendships, their bravery and resilience in overcoming obstacles, and their heartfelt support and blessings for those in distress.
Story Books
The Story Book Collection contains two story books: The Strongest Eagle and Light From The Amazon River. The books are written and drawn by students from my school's international department, Dalton Academy.
The Strongest Eagle is a story about a young eagle who overcomes difficulties and finally flies over the Mount Everest. We want to emphasize the eagle's ability of resilience and encourage refugees to stay strong even in distresses.
Light From The Amazon River tells the story of a little otter who leaves his family and seeks for the end of the rain forest. However, he realizes that no treasure could compare to his family. We want to emphasize the idea that the meaning of "home" is family members.
Courses
After I got back to China, I decided to led an art therapy course in my school. I prepared the materials I need for the courses, and made PPTs to ensure students in this class could truly learn something. My course will last for a whole semester, and I hope more people could realize the magic of art and care more about the mental illness patient around us.
Picture Album
In this trip, we met different refugees and used our camera to record their real situations. Their harsh living condition and the smiles on their faces collided with each other and created a strong contrast. We would like to show our pictures and the stories behind them with the world, and hope more people could care for their living.