House of Peace - exploring ideas of home.

Our most recent project in China, in partnership with Hua Dan, was a project called Home of Peace, that brought together mothers and children both in China, England, Scotland, France and the US to explore ideas of home, belonging, family and food.  The bi-monthly workshops took place as a whole group across timezones through Zoom, as well as through in-person ‘yuanzi’ small groups, and culminated in a series of videos told by and for the children.  We were thrilled to partner with animator Linda Yi who created a series of graphics to accompany the videos and ensure that the videos had a life beyond the workshops themselves.  Both the women and children found that the timing of the workshop as the world emerged from lockdown was an opportunity to re-evaluate how home can be a source of growth and nurturing, as well as a haven from the difficulties experienced in the outside world.  Many of the women commented on how the project had also enabled them to re-engage with their children and remember the importance of their parenthood and better ways to empower their children’s creativity.