High school students in Van, eastern Türkiye, aim to raise awareness about the humanitarian tragedy caused by Israel’s attacks on Gaza by reflecting it on canvases.
Students at Atatürk Anadolu High School in the Ipekyolu district decided to paint to raise awareness and avoid remaining silent about the humanitarian crisis in the strip. The students shared their ideas with the school administration and teachers, who supported them and began painting in an after-school workshop.
After class every day, students and teachers gather in the workshop to depict the pain and suffering in Palestine and Gaza through oil paintings. The students plan to hold an exhibition in the city center with their paintings to create social awareness on the issue of Gaza.
The school’s principal, Yusuf Sarıkaya, told Anadolu Agency (AA) that they allocated the school’s workshop to students who initiated such a meaningful project. He mentioned the great humanitarian tragedy in Gaza and the thousands of deaths, expressing his pride when he heard the students’ desire to take action.
“All of our students approach this issue with great sensitivity; they are doing everything they can. After lessons, our students head to the workshop and stunning and meaningful artworks emerge. When we look at the paintings, we feel saddened, but we feel hopeful seeing the sensitivity in the students,” Sarıkaya said.
Art teacher Abdulhadi Temizay said that after hearing about the student project, they immediately started working in the workshop. He highlighted that the world is witnessing the occupation of Palestine and the killing of thousands of people.
“In Palestine, people are being killed and forced to migrate. As we always say, the biggest victims of this war are the children. In our paintings, we tried to give a voice to the children, especially those in Palestine. Our students focused on children in their drawings,” Temizay said.
Explaining that the project aims to raise social awareness, Temizay added, “I was very happy when the students came to me with this idea. They come voluntarily after school and with their drawings, the students try to be the voice of the innocent people killed in Palestine. If one of our students’ paintings finds a social response and raises awareness, that would be a victory for us. Our teachers and students visit our workshop during breaks, so we reach more people this way.”
Eylül Uçar, a student at the school, emphasized that the Gaza massacre should not be ignored. “We are reflecting what is happening through paintings to raise social awareness. We are doing everything we can in this regard. Especially when we draw children, we experience emotional moments; we put ourselves in their place while drawing,” she said.
Emre Yaşa, a 12th-grade student, said they are conducting activities to raise awareness and express their reactions to the attacks. “We are working to raise awareness in society and make the voice of the Palestinian people heard,” Yaşa added.