Art and culture are effective media which can be extensively used to create awareness about the issues of domestic violence and thereby reduce the vulnerability of women to succumb to it. An art exhibition titled Re-Drawing Resistance: South Asian Women’s Stories of Survival and Resistance hopes to do the same with its fifteen-day programme.

The exhibition will see the collaboration of a number of organizations from all over the world with a common goal of eradicating violence against women. As the official website of Re-Drawing Resistance puts it, "Organizations from New York City, Sanctuary for Families and Sakhi for South Asian Women, have partnered with the International Foundation for Crime Prevention and Victim Care in Chennai, the Edhi Foundation in Karachi, Pakistan and OfERR in India and Sri Lanka to create a transcontinental art exhibit exploring the intersection of gender, sexuality, violence, and resistance amongst women across South Asia and the diaspora."

The artworks, which will be put up on display from 7th-22nd May, will highlight the work of women survivors of domestic violence as well as that of other artists from the U.S., India and Sri Lanka. The opening night will feature a performance of Meri Kahani: My Story, a play developed by social workers which sheds light on the conditions of the victims of domestic violence and the various forms of abuse they are subjected to.

The concept of art therapy, which began shortly after World War II to aid veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress, is now being adopted widely to help battered women deal with their physical and emotional scars. Such programmes designed for women facing domestic abuse are now gaining momentum. While these art programs are not used to replace counseling entirely, they are often an important avenue of self-discovery. Art as we know is a very important tool of creative expression and proves useful to women who need to vent their long suppressed feelings. Imagery, objects, lines and figures . . . they become letters and words for their experiences. The sharing of trauma is often painful, but yet wonderful and healing.

Just as much as it is a medium of expression, Art is also used for resistance. And one only needs to look at Art history over the centuries to see how each progressive art form rejected the techniques of its predecessor. And it is heartening to know, that women who’ve lived their lives in the shadows of violence are using Art as resistance – opening up doors and empowering them.