ESCAP hosted the opening ceremony of the 2015 Art for All camp this week, which offers young people with a range of disabilities the opportunity to develop their skills and talents by engaging in artistic activities.
The ceremony took place on 29 July 2015, at the United Nations Conference Centre in Bangkok, and featured musical and dance performances from some of Art for All’s young participants, many of whom are deaf and hard of hearing; blind and partially sighted; young persons with intellectual disabilities, and young persons with physical disabilities.
More than 200 young people attended the ceremony, with welcome statements from Mr. Shun-ichi Murata, Deputy Executive Secretary of ESCAP; Professor Channarong Pornrungroj, the President of the Art for All Foundation, and Professor Kasem Wattanachai, member of the Privy Council of Thailand.
Mr. Murata highlighted how ESCAP is supporting member States to promote the rights of persons with disabilities: ‘the Convention [on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities] and the Incheon Strategy are in place so that people like many of you here today can fulfill your dreams for what you want to do in your lives. The Art for All Camp, which will start today, is one important step towards realizing your dreams.’
The Art for All camp offers its young participants the opportunity to engage with different forms of artistic expression, through musical, visual and mixed media, as well as dance, drama and literature. Through these experiences, Art for All’s young artists are able to develop the tools to work with each other in teams, and to empower themselves through creativity.
Art for All is now in its nineteenth year, having been established in 1996 by Dr. Pornungroj, the Dean of the Faculty of Fine and Applied Arts at Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok. ESCAP has been supporting the opening of their annual camp since its inception.
This year’s Camp runs from July 29 to 2 August 2015 and takes place at the Arayana Phupimarn Resort and Spa, in Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand