Bodies tell emotional stories

A BoysTown art program resulting in powerful 3D artworks was displayed for all to see at this year’s Brisbane Festival.

The BoysTown Body Language workshop has been operating nationally for the past five years with about 600 torsos made in the process. The Body Language workshop encourages young people to portray their thoughts and emotions about their own lives on handmade plaster torsos.

Some young people struggle to communicate with counsellors and internalise things. This workshop helps them release their emotions. Evangeline Goodfellow - BoysTown

From the beginning this is a cathartic process, young people creating torsos with the same bandages that doctors use to heal broken bones.  These artworks are truly creations of the positive and loving spirit that young people unlock by working within the program. It's an expression of their pain and hope from start to finish.

The young artists drew on their own life experience for inspiration and embrace the motivation of healing. Topics they covered in their art included:

• Bullying and Depression,
• Physical and verbal abuse,
• Culture and Religion,
• Refugee treatment
• Indigenous Australian challenges
• Environment and War
• Suicide, and addiction
• Violence and heartbreak

They was also a strong representation of positive emotions. The ideals of a better tomorrow are just as important to explore in art:

• Love
• Peace
• Hope and joy
• Dreams for the future
• Family

The process of healing the spirit is often a long journey and these artworks are incredibly deep and (at times) heart-wrenching. Often, program participants have never been encouraged to explore their emotions or to consider new ways of expressing their feelings. This BoysTown program gives these young people a new direction to explore.

We hope you enjoy the images that have been supplied by Atmosphere Photography.

Let us know your thoughts about this innovative BoysTown program. Comment below.