EGAKU for
Kids & Youth

7 years since the Tohoku earthquake, we implemented EGAKU for a group of high school students in Fukushima as a part of a retreat conducted by non-profit Bridge for Fukushima. 

The aim of the retreat is to guide students to meet with various professionals and think about their future. Reflecting back on the earthquake, each participant reflected on “What I want to value” through EGAKU and dialogue with themselves and others. Each artwork that emerged was full of hope, and the students powerfully conveyed the meaning contained in their works.

Below are some of thoughts, feelings, and reflection the students experienced through the process:

• "I feel things I hadn’t thought before came out through the creative process and was also able to see unexpected things about the other members."
• "It was good to be able to express my thoughts as accurately as possible through shapes and colors."
• "Each artwork was unique and the diversity was very nice. I was able to encounter a wonderful artwork that made me think there is such a way to think about what we value."
• "Everyone expressed what they value and their circumstances in their own way, and their unique personalities were evident. It helped me to discover that “drawing a picture” is one of the simplest ways of expressing myself as I am."
• "Even with the same theme, it is different from person to person, and the modes of expression are also diverse. It reminded me that what occurs between people and in our selves differ according to the individual."
• "I felt that each person lives while carrying something they value, even if that is unspoken in daily life. It was interesting to see how similar thoughts and feelings were expressed in different ways from person to person."