An art workshop with Noémi Beyer’s favorite poem ‘Orfeu negro’ by Michael Slory.
Noémi Beyer is a visual arts teacher at the Oscar Carre School, a primary school in Amsterdam. Her portrait is in my book ALA SMA TORI – Keti Koti Verbeeld, including an interview and her favorite poem, Orfeu negro by Michael Slory. Noémi had chosen the first line of it, ‘Mi sa singi a son opo kon’ (I will sing to make the sun come up), as the title for her story. I painted this text with ink made from turmeric on pieces of cotton. Since I had been working as a guest teacher in her classes (groep 5 = grade 3, 8/9 years old), I came up with this extra art assignment. using the same turmeric ink, and some of the coffee ink I had used for Max Linsen’s story (whose portrait and story are also in my book).

My pen and watercolor potrait of Noémi Beyer – her text in turmeric ink on a piece of cotton.

This was the third lesson in these two groups, in the first two lessons the children made portraits of each other with fineliner and watercolor, the end result being a poster of all the children in the group. This time the kids listen to Michael Slory’s poem, in Dutch and in Sranantongo (Surinamese). One girl reacted: “I think it’s about someone who sings because he hopes the sun will rise, he means that bad things will stop, that slavery will stop.” My jaw dropped, how well understood and expressed! No need to add anything to that.

I made this video, with the children’s art works. Accompanied by the poem, sung by Jeannine la Rose. Click on the image, or here, to watch the video on youtube. The sound recording you here, as well as the photo of Michael Slory, come from a video by Usha Marhé.

The children were free to draw what they see in front of them or what thoughts/images come into their heads. All children were very involved and enthusiastic, their works and visions moved me. Some children said:

• I first drew that someone was going to sing, then the sun, then that camp and the stars, and then I thought of making the sun yellow. And the background was brown because that also went very well together.
• Look, this is the coffee plantation and the tree immediately smells of coffee because I also painted it with the coffee ink. Yes, so someone is stuck. He still sits and sings until the sun rises.
• I drew Miss Noémi because she sings until the sun rises. So I drew half a sun. And stars and drops of dew. And the sea because that’s where the sun always comes from.
• I first drew the huts and then a fire. And then people sleep. And then I made the stars. I still want to color the sky.