Psychologist Andrea Blagojevic, who works closely with the refugee children, says the drawings usually belie the horrors they have experienced on their dramatic journeys.
"The drawings are mostly dominated by bright colors -- yellows, reds, greens," Blagojevic says. "There are mostly houses, trees...The drawings are happy and only rarely do we have a child drawing what he or she experienced. I think they are still unaware of what is happening around them, especially if their parents are not talking to them but trying to protect them from current events."
Some of the children, however, seem to be aware of their predicament, such as 5-year-old Muzzamil from Syria, who drew an entire house being carried aboard a ship. Or 10-year-old Naweed from Iraq, who drew a peace dove. Even those drawings are hopeful, however.
Children's Corner is run under the auspices of the Serbian government, the city of Belgrade, and UNICEF, the United Nations Children's Fund.
-- Ognjen Zoric (RFE/RL's Balkan Service)
"The drawings are mostly dominated by bright colors -- yellows, reds, greens," Blagojevic says. "There are mostly houses, trees...The drawings are happy and only rarely do we have a child drawing what he or she experienced. I think they are still unaware of what is happening around them, especially if their parents are not talking to them but trying to protect them from current events."
Some of the children, however, seem to be aware of their predicament, such as 5-year-old Muzzamil from Syria, who drew an entire house being carried aboard a ship. Or 10-year-old Naweed from Iraq, who drew a peace dove. Even those drawings are hopeful, however.
Children's Corner is run under the auspices of the Serbian government, the city of Belgrade, and UNICEF, the United Nations Children's Fund.
-- Ognjen Zoric (RFE/RL's Balkan Service)
