Art and peace – debate at Kapiolani Community College

By Leo de Azambuja

Norwegian peace mediator Johan Galtung was a guest speaker at Kapiolani Community College last October. He joined seven other people between community leaders, school members and artists debating about the relationship between art and peace. Ideas about art and its connection to peace flourished throughout the debate.

Art celebrates differences

It was suggested that artists have the ability to look at things in many different angles. Artists are able to let people see what they are seeing. Art creates new realities, closes gaps and connects us to the world, to each other, to different groups and different ethnic backgrounds. It celebrates differences. It is a place where diversity comes together.
Working together with other people is the antithesis of violence and war. Art is not as much an answer to violence as it is a perception. However, a perception can provoke people to come up with an answer to violence.

Italian architect says anyone can be an artist

Daniela Rocco Minerbi, a soft-spoken Italian architect and artist, embraces the theory that the creative process is the most important part in the artistic creation. The final masterpiece is the testament of the different layers of reality that the artist goes through. The development and the integration of the creative process make us reach levels that go beyond our cognitive minds. But this is not elitist, as everybody has a potential to become an artist. According to her, anyone can have a creative expression.

Local woman gives voice to community through art

Kim Coffee-Isak, the executive director of arts at Mark's Garage, believes that community art projects have demonstrated what residents can do when art is used as a tool to create peace. She organized community projects, including keiki art classes and the Chinatown art project giving voice to community members through their art. Community members working together were able not only to identify common problems, but also assets. The Chinatown art project brought together diverse groups, becoming a way for community members to voice their opinion.

KCC gallery director sends local exhibition worldwide
David Behike, the Koa Gallery director at Kapiolani Community College, said that art is very important because what we see is how we feel. In that sense, art is an important tool to promote peace. With that in mind, KCC created a mobile exhibition of 80 artists and non-artists that is set to go around the world soon.

Art as a tool to promote peace

The audience asked Johan Galtung what does it take to teach peace in Hawaii. He said it takes defining skills. We got to help people find what they are good at, and then give them room to develop it. Art is a tool, because it promotes interaction between people. There are a couple schools in Norway where students learn how to learn something on their own. When students finish their high school education, they are able to teach something that they developed on their own.

Peace mediator v. peace conciliator

Galtung is a peace mediator, a job that, according to him, takes art to perform. As a mediator, he creates a new reality where something incompatible becomes compatible. He usually meets with two or more distinct parties at separate times, and has to convince them to solve conflicts peacefully.
A conciliator has a different task, he said. His job would be to be able to heal and bring closure to an argument. Nobody is asked to forget, but to put the past behind.  According to Galtung, about five percent of world conflicts are about religion. The other 95 percent are about history. To convince people to put the past behind, especially in regions marred with years of war, is very difficult.

Final thoughts

At the end of the debate, one lesson was to be learned. There are two distinct ways of dealing with conflicts. One is to criticize reality, another is to present creative ways to change and build a new reality. Although both are important processes of change, criticism is just a step. Artists use criticism, as it is an answer to present reality. But because it touches people emotionally, art is an extremely important bridge to incite change and build a new reality. 

www.transcend.org

Transcend, a peace and development network for conflict transformation by peaceful means. Director: Galtung.

http://www.chinatownhi.com/firstfri.asp

Join local folks and visitors alike on the first Friday of every month for Chinatown's First Friday evening festival. Chinatown and downtown galleries, museums and studios are open to the public for this popular event that provides an opportunity to experience the artistic and cultural resources of Honolulu. Festivities include live music, street entertainment, open cafes and bistros. antique stores -- and even a tattoo parlor. A free gallery walking map is available at all participating sites. For more information about First Friday, call 521-2903.