Rebus Theatre and Project Alchemy Present
Walnut Shell Art Workshop
Join Project Alchemy artist Hangama Obaidullah as she shares part of her Afghani culture guiding participants through a process of making artwork from Walnut shells.
1:30pm – 3pm Saturday September 23
West Courtyard, Gorman Arts Centre, Braddon. Free to attend.
As part of Project Alchemy, multi-disciplinary artist Hangama Obaidullah is running a walnut workshop for the Ainslie and Gorman Arts Centres’ Open Day.! Stemming from the innovative and daily use of walnuts from her life in Afghanistan, Hangama will be sharing creative ways to make artworks from them and embracing eco-friendly methods to create art.
Obaidullah says, “When I was a child, because we lived in a war-torn society, we were always taught to appreciate the environment and make proper use of nature. The elders in the community tried to find a solution when they were in trouble. Because of that, they always used walnut covers/skins instead of logs to cook food, and in winters, instead of using gas or electricity to make the room warm, they used walnut covers/skins, I grew up with the same mentality.”
Hangama came to Australia from Afghanistan as a refugee in August 2003. At that time she spoke no English, but in October that year she began her English language studies and progressed rapidly. She enrolled as a mature age student at St Mary’s Senior High School, Sydney, NSW, graduating with her Higher School Certificate in 2009. She received an Award for Excellence, Major Works, and a Commendation Award for her HSC body of artwork. Hangama has since developed her arts practice in painting, drawing, photography and writing.
“I am using walnut covers/skins to create artworks that can share my culture with other people in the community as well as looking after the nature, take caring of the environment and remembering the history of bushfires in recent years where many Australian lost their loved ones, homes, health and many more.”
This workshop is part of a Project Alchemy, a series of cross disciplinary arts projects to build community connection across south-east Australia. The project is facilitated by award winning Canberra based Rebus Theatre and involves 15 artists from Bega Valley Shire, Eurobodalla Shire, East Gippsland, Queanbeyan-Palerang Regional Council, and the ACT.
Project Alchemy is made possible thanks to funding from the Australian Government for the Black Summer Bushfire Grant Program. Rebus is also supported by Ainslie and Gorman Arts Centres and the ACT Government.
