Conference Proceedings 2010 [pdf] - Art & Design Symposium ...

Symposium Papers
Art and Design with Children’s Participation
Deniz Hasirci, Izmir University of Economics, Turkey
In this session, the discrepancy in the definition of participation, participatory methods used in art and design
projects with children, and possible difficulties that arise from these processes will be discussed. A design
project and an art project will be explored and the differences in both methods will be compared. The
participatory design processes of a school design project will be explained. In this project, the children and
youth of different age groups collaborated to form a learning environment, and an interpretation of a life-size
mural of Picasso’s “Guernica”. Additionally, examples will be given from realized design and art projects
that have come to life by a series of participatory processes with children and other stakeholders, such as
teachers, principals, museum personnel, volunteers, and parents. Quite often, users do not have a say in
the environments they occupy. Although participatory efforts aim to prevent using standard methods and
tried-and-true solutions, commonly, the findings are not reflected upon the resulting spaces. This is not to
say that these processes are worthless. However, consideration has to be given so that children are not
tokenized. It is important that they are interpreted correctly, just methods are used, and the space that is
created at the end carries qualities that are actual results of the processes. The same is true for art projects.
Although they are more flexible when compared to design project in terms of architectural standards,
functional needs and requirements, project organizers may still tend to have their opinions applied instead of
actually listening to the children. This is a crucial point as these processes are very educational for both the
users and the designers, and can be very efficient and fruitful when the findings are extended into the
project correctly. In the examples to be given, the ongoing participatory processes have already had this
collaborative and unifying effect. The presentation will connect to one design (“Peace Village”) and one art
workshop (“Difference and Peace”) to be applied by the author with children from Hartsfield Elementary
School, as well as a panel discussion and the exhibition of the Kids’ Guernica mural completed in 2007 by
Turkish and Greek children.
Participation
Children have a right to take part in the decision-making process as active participants who are considered
equals to all of the participants as well as the persons organizing the activity (Clark and Percy-Smith, 2006;
Sanoff, 1990). This approach dates back to Hart and his definition of participation as the “process of sharing
decisions which affect one’s life and the life of the community in which one lives”, and that participation being
the fundamental right of citizenship for everyone in a community (1992, p. 5). This approach considers the
child an equal in the decisions that are made. Several research studies have been established gaining support
for this view. However, care should be given so that one does not fall into tokenist approaches that “use” the
participatory acts with children for their own good without really listening to them.
Involving children in participatory processes of design and architecture is an attempt to come closer to an
inclusive and holistic approach within the design world. This is especially true when one considers the fact
that children almost never have a say regarding the environments they grow up in. The involvement of
parents and teachers is key in any issue related to children and children’s environments. Where children’s
environments are considered, it is crucial that they be a source of fulfillment as well as part of enhancing
educational programs within schools. Thus, what can working with children teach designers and architects?
First, if a space is created for children, the fact that they have a say in the space they will occupy is very
important. Also, in a changing world in which children are experiencing a life very different than the children
of 10, or even 5 years ago, it is important to consider their needs. Thus, one cannot keep repeating old triedand-true
solutions for designs in children’s environments (Clark and Percy-Smith, 2007; Hasirci and
Demirkan, 2003; Hasirci and Wilson, 2009; West, 2007).
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