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Accepted Paper:
Collage-making in conflict research
Gordon Crawford
(Coventry University)
James Kewir Kiven
(African Leadership Centre Trust, Nairobi, Kenya)
Paper short abstract:
We examine collage-making as an arts-based, participatory method in conflict research. It is based on experience of collage-making with internally-displaced persons from the Anglophone conflict in Cameroon, creating a safe space for participants to express themselves creatively and non-verbally.
Paper long abstract:
This paper examines collage-making as an arts-based, participatory method for use in conflict research. Its benefits can include the creation of a safe space for participants to express themselves creatively and non-verbally. This is especially important for affected civilians who have experienced first-hand the traumas of conflict and provides an opportunity for them to express their diverse experiences, emotions and perspectives on the conflict. This can be particularly important in civil war contexts where citizens can be fearful of freely verbalising their thoughts and views due to possible reprisal from warring parties. While collage-making has been described by Flicker et al (2016) and others as useful in participatory and decolonising research with endogenous groups, its use in conflict research in Africa remains limited. The paper is based on our experience of using collage-making as a data collection method amongst internally-displaced persons from the Anglophone conflict in Cameroon. Our aim was to bring the voices of those most-affected people into the public domain and influence dialogues for peace. Collage-making sessions were undertaken in four locations with IDPs, composed of mixed intergenerational groups of approximately 15 people in each session. The lived experiences of participants from the conflict-affected communities were captured in their collages, with some participants discussing their collages with the rest of the group after completion. Common themes that emerged from the collages and interviews included marginalisation, displacement, violence, rape, burning of villages, rural history and transformation, hunger, education, dialogue, mediation, the search for peace with justice.
Click the star to add/remove an item to/from your individual schedule.
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Accepted Paper:
Paper short abstract:
Paper long abstract:
This paper examines collage-making as an arts-based, participatory method for use in conflict research. Its benefits can include the creation of a safe space for participants to express themselves creatively and non-verbally. This is especially important for affected civilians who have experienced first-hand the traumas of conflict and provides an opportunity for them to express their diverse experiences, emotions and perspectives on the conflict. This can be particularly important in civil war contexts where citizens can be fearful of freely verbalising their thoughts and views due to possible reprisal from warring parties. While collage-making has been described by Flicker et al (2016) and others as useful in participatory and decolonising research with endogenous groups, its use in conflict research in Africa remains limited. The paper is based on our experience of using collage-making as a data collection method amongst internally-displaced persons from the Anglophone conflict in Cameroon. Our aim was to bring the voices of those most-affected people into the public domain and influence dialogues for peace. Collage-making sessions were undertaken in four locations with IDPs, composed of mixed intergenerational groups of approximately 15 people in each session. The lived experiences of participants from the conflict-affected communities were captured in their collages, with some participants discussing their collages with the rest of the group after completion. Common themes that emerged from the collages and interviews included marginalisation, displacement, violence, rape, burning of villages, rural history and transformation, hunger, education, dialogue, mediation, the search for peace with justice.
Arts for Peace in Sub-Saharan Africa
Session 1 Friday 8 July, 2022, -