War through childrens eyes

WAR THROUGH CHILDREN’S EYES

CHILDREN CREATIVE COMPETITION

This initiative aims to raise awareness of the impact of wars and violent conflicts on communities worldwide, with a particular focus on the most vulnerable members of these communities: children. As there are currently 89.3 million forcibly displaced individuals worldwide, with almost half of them being children, this competition offers an opportunity for creative expression for young individuals aged between 7 and 17 residing in the UK to raise awareness and highlight the problems confronted by their peers globally, or even themselves.

The competition was organised for the very first time, by the Azerbaijani Community in the United Kingdom, in 2022 as a tribute to the 30th anniversary of the Khojaly massacre that took place on the night of February 26th, 1992 in Azerbaijan, claiming the lives of 613 civilians, including 106 women and 63 children.

It encourages children to express their experiences through creative works and contribute to a better understanding of the struggles faced by those affected by war and conflict.

Forced to leave their homes, schools, friends, and families, many of these children will spend their entire childhoods away from home, grieving lost relatives, or experiencing the trauma of witnessing horrific acts of violence. By highlighting the impact of war and conflict on children, the competition aims to raise awareness, to cultivate tolerance and empathy for children whose lives are threatened, regardless of their origin, and provide a platform for these young individuals to share their experiences and contribute to a better future.

Our ultimate objective is to empower children to speak out, take action and share the stories of their peers who have no voice.

We welcome aspiring artists and writers between the ages of 7 and 17 to join us in our pursuit to end wars and violence and to raise awareness of the need for all children to have safe and peaceful childhoods. This year, we have partnered with Beyond Conflict UK and encourage all participants to make a donation to their cause. Your contribution will go towards providing vital mental support and services to children affected by war and conflict.

Please visit the "Donate to Beyond Conflict" page to make your donation.

Our mission

Our mission is to teach a greater understanding of the appalling effects of war and violent conflicts on families and communities, and the plight of the refugees that such conflicts inevitably produce. We aim to create a platform where young people in the United Kingdom can learn tolerance and sensitivity towards children whose lives have been made unsafe, wherever in the world they may have come from, and to inspire them to find ways to help those in great need. This year’s competition is the first of its kind; we hope to hold it annually from this year forward. We want to build War Through Childrens’ Eyes into a stage from which children can stand and speak to all of us, reaching out hands to one another and telling the stories of those children who do not yet have a voice.

If you are between 7 and 17 years old and if you would like to join us in our call for an end to wars and violence, and through your creativity to advocate for children everywhere being able to enjoy safe, peaceful childhoods, we would love you to become a part of this project.

This year we have chosen to support the Beyond Conflict organisation and we would like to encourage everyone who participates in the competition to make a donation to Beyond Conflict UK (please go to the “Donate to Beyond Conflict” page for donations).

Prizes

There will be prizes awarded for both the Art and Writing competitions in each age category, based on the following criteria:

the extent to which submissions address the competition theme,
the demonstration of originality and imagination,
the quality and skill in the chosen medium,
attention to detail,
accuracy in communicating issues,
and adherence to category requirements such as length and file type.

Art competition

1st place winners

will receive an Amazon voucher worth £100 and a £200 voucher of art supplies will be awarded to a school, if the entry is submitted by a school.

2nd place winners

will receive an Amazon voucher worth £70 and a £140 voucher of art supplies will be awarded to a school, if the entry is submitted by a school.

3rd place winners

will receive an Amazon voucher worth £50 and a £100 voucher of art supplies will be awarded to a school, if the entry is submitted by a school.

Writing competition

1st place winners

will receive an Amazon voucher worth £100 and if entry is submitted by a school, the winning school will be entitled to an online creative writing workshop/Q&A session with one of our judging panel writers, as well as book supplies for their library.

2nd place winners

will receive an Amazon voucher worth £70 and a £140 voucher of book tokens will be awarded to a school, if the entry is submitted by a school.

3rd place winners

will receive an Amazon voucher worth £50 and a £100 voucher of book tokens will be awarded to a school, if the entry is submitted by a school.

Our judges

This is the list of our awesome judges:

Arabella Dorman

Award winning, internationally renowned artist and one of Britain’s leading portrait painters.

Arabella enjoys a prominent reputation as a public speaker, fundraiser, and has recently been awarded winner of the Oman Masterpiece 2021. She was listed as one of BBC’s Top 100 Women and Salt Magazine’s 100 Most Inspiring Women. Her humanitarian work has been profiled across national and international television, radio and print, including New York Times, BBC, CNN, Aljizeera, Radio 4, BBC World Service, and featured on the front cover of The Times, The Guardian and The Sunday Times Magazine.

Winner of the Global Mosaic Award 2019, and shortlisted for the Arts & Christianity Awards 2019, Arabella’s installations Flight and Suspended have been globally acclaimed in raising awareness about the consequences of war and the forced displacement of people. First premiered in St James’s Church Piccadilly, Suspended toured the UK, and was most notably hung in Canterbury and Leicester cathedrals (2017/18). Suspended is now on exhibit in Thomas’s School Battersea, London.

Kubra Aliyeva

Artist and Social psychologist

Kubra Aliyeva is a 32 years old artist and Social psychologist born in Baku, Azerbaijan. Kubra studied Social and Cultural psychology at LSE. Throughout her life she has been passionate about art and painting in particular. She was taught by great Azerbaijani and British artists and had 3 years of education at London Fine Art Studios. Kubra’s focus is a figurative art. Her works are mostly in oil. She is always aspiring to evolve her skills as well as looking for new sources of inspiration.

Svetlana Quigley

Svetlana is a professional artist and educator with a BA degree in art from St.Petersburg Russia and PGSE teaching qualification in the UK. Having 20 years experience of teaching children in Russian Art Schools, Primary and Secondary art departments in England she has developed her own program of study, where she uses the best methods of 2 countries. Svetlana has organised and taken part in “Take one picture” The national gallery, London 2008; “Russian folklore through children eyes “, Hall Place and gardens, Bexley, Kent 2010; “Second World War in Bexley”, Hall place and gardens, Bexley, Kent, 2011; “Paralympic heritage”, Hall place and garden, Bexley, Kent 2012, and many others.

Naila Hazell

Contemporary British artist Naila Hazell was born in 1981 and grew up in Baku, Azerbaijan. She was taught by renowned Soviet social realism painter Boyukagha Mirzezade while studying fine arts and getting her MA at the Azerbaijani Fine Arts Academy. A figurative artist, working mainly in oil, she's also expanding her practices with different media for some of her future conceptual art projects. Hazell has had numerous solo and group shows in Baku and now, with her studio based in West London, she is continuing her work and exhibiting in the UK.

Robin Stevens

Bestselling and award-winning author of the Murder Most Unladylike series.

Robin Stevens is the bestselling and award-winning author of the Murder Most Unladylike series. She was born in California and grew up in an Oxford college, across the road from the house where Alice in Wonderland lived.

When she was twelve, her father handed her a copy of The Murder of Roger Ackroyd and she realised that she wanted to be Agatha Christie when she grew up. She spent her teenage years at Cheltenham Ladies’ College, reading a lot of murder mysteries and hoping that she’d get the chance to do some detecting herself (she didn’t). She went to university, where she studied crime fiction, and then worked at a children's publisher.

Robin is now a full-time author, and lives in Oxford with her family. Her latest book is the Ministry of Unladylike Activity.

Dan Smith

Growing up, Dan Smith led three lives. In one he survived the day-to-day humdrum of boarding school, while in another he travelled the world, finding adventure in the paddy fields of South East Asia and the jungles of Brazil. The third life he lived in a world of his own, making up stories.

Dan has written several novels for younger readers, including Nisha’s War, She Wolf, and My Friend the Enemy. Dan is also the author of the sci-fi horror adventures The Crooked Oak Mysteries.

Lucy Strange

Lucy Strange is an award-winning children’s author who lives in the heart of the Kent countryside. Lucy’s critically acclaimed books capture elements of classic children’s literature in a style that is engaging and accessible for today’s younger readers. Often inspired by folklore and fairy tales, Lucy combines historical settings with touches of magic and fantasy to create utterly convincing worlds in which anything might happen.

Abi Salvesen

Abi Elphinstone grew up in Scotland where she spent most of her childhood running wild across the moors, hiding in tree houses and building dens in the woods. After being coaxed out of her tree house, she studied English at Bristol University and then worked as an English teacher in Tanzania, Berkshire and London. She is the bestselling and multi-award shortlisted author of Saving Neverland, The Unmapped Chronicles (Everdark, Rumblestar, Jungledrop, The Crackledawn Dragon), Sky Song, The Dreamsnatcher trilogy and, for younger readers, The Snow Dragon and The Frost Goblin. When she's not writing Abi volunteers for Beanstalk, speaks in schools and travels the world looking for her next story. Her latest adventures include living with the Kazakh Eagle Hunters in Mongolia and dog-sledding across the Arctic.

How to apply

The War Through Children's Eyes Competition comprises an Art and Creative Writing Competition. Participants may submit an artwork or a short story, or both.

Art competition

To enter the Art Competition, you must create an artwork (drawing, painting, mixed media or digital) that is inspired by the themes of war and peace. Here are some suggestions to consider when creating your piece:

think about how your artwork can raise awareness about children who are affected by violent conflicts;
create a scene that depicts the struggles of children who are trying to escape or who are waiting to be rescued;
determine the message you want your artwork to convey to viewers; imagine a world without wars, where children can feel safe and secure in their own homes.

The deadline for submitting your artwork is September 1st, 2023. You can find our full terms and conditions on our website here. To enter the competition, an adult sponsor (such as a teacher, parent or mentor) must submit digital photographs of your completed artwork through our online form and donate on this page.

Writing competition

To participate in the writing competition, you must create a short story that depicts war through the eyes of a child. The story must be between 500 and 1000 words in length and should highlight significant moments in the child's life, as well as the impact of violence on their family and community. Additionally, it should showcase how war affects the child's life, while also exploring the powerful forces of hope and love that can counteract conflict and contribute to peace.

Your story should be written in English and demonstrate a clear, original voice with a strong imagination. It is important to keep in mind that your story must address the theme of the competition.

The deadline for submitting your artwork is May 15th, 2023. You can find our full terms and conditions on our website here. To enter the competition, an adult sponsor (such as a teacher, parent or mentor) must submit digital photographs of your completed artwork through our online form and donate on this page.

Who May Enter

This competition is open to all UK residents between the ages of 7 and 17. There are two age categories, namely the Junior Division for children aged 7 to 11, and the Senior Division for those aged 12 to 17. When submitting an entry, participants should ensure they select the correct division based on their age at the time of submission.

Participants are permitted to submit one entry per competition. Entries may be submitted either by parents on behalf of their children or by teachers. Schools have the option of submitting entries for either a single or multiple students.