It all started with the little things: a smile, a coffee, a shared meal and a touch of human warmth. It was these everyday gestures that gave life to Maison Sourire. Under the leadership of its director, Marie Laurini, the association Sourrire asbl has gradually developed a support programme for people with multiple traumas, many of whom have an immigrant background.

Maison Sourrire seeks to create an environment in which individuals can regain their self-confidence, become independent, and play an active role in community life. Having started in a small house in Dudelange, the initiative now operates from 91 Rue de l’Alzette in the heart of Esch-sur-Alzette, where it is organised around three pillars: L’Atelier des Possibles, Beauté Intérieure and Artisans de Demain.

The Fondation Sommer initially supported three projects run by the association Sourrire asbl, before continuing to support them as part of a two-year programme designed to enable the association to structure its offer and allow those receiving support to take part in the artistic workshops offered over a sustained period. Since 2026, we have been supporting ‘Artisans de demain’, an initiative dedicated to artistic activities and the exploration of different forms of creativity.

When creativity becomes a space for experimenting

The photography workshops, led by Carmen Palermo, are aimed at young people aged 15 to 25. Rather than simply teaching a technique, the sessions encourage participants to discover the many possibilities offered by the image.

Throughout the workshops, participants experiment with different techniques: Polaroid, plant prints, portraits and photography in urban settings. This diversity makes it clear that photography is not simply a matter of pressing the shutter button: it can be constructed, transformed, reimagined or combined with other forms of creativity.

During a Polaroid workshop, for example, participants began by taking a photographic portrait before painting directly onto the image. Colours and shapes then alter the photograph, giving it movement and creating a personal interpretation of the original portrait. Photography becomes a medium that everyone can make their own.

The portraits workshops then provided an opportunity to explore the relationship to their own image in a different way. Participants took turns as both photographers and models, before taking part in the selection and post-production of the photographs. They were therefore not merely in front of or behind the camera: they were involved at several stages of the creative process.

Other sessions shifted the focus and perspective towards the environment. Using examples from magazines and newspapers, the young people studied the framing and camera angles before taking on photographic challenges in the streets of Esch-sur-Alzette.

Here are a few photos taken by the participants:

This variety of approaches keeps curiosity alive and stimulates creativity. Above all, it gives young people the opportunity to gradually discover their own way of observing. Whatever catches their attention becomes the starting point for an image they choose to create.

Kintsugi : repairing and revealing

The Kintsugi workshops, led by the artist Thuy Gattaux (Ar’Thuy), are open to families and young people. Kintsugi is based on a Japanese practice which involves taking an object, breaking it, observing its different parts and working out how to put them back together whilst leaving the marks of the repair visible. The activity has been adapted for younger children. Objects that were already broken were placed in surprise bags; each participant then discovered which one they would be reconstructing.

This way of working with objects leaves plenty of space for experimentation. You have to observe, handle, try things out and sometimes adjust your idea as you go along. The result is not entirely predictable, and that is precisely what makes the activity so interesting.

The repair does not necessarily aim to make the cracks in the original object disappear. On the contrary, they become visible in the new creation. The workshop thus offers an opportunity to explore the possibility of giving a new form to something that already exists.

« Some children ask to take the object home to display it in their bedroom and keep it with them. » – Thuy Gattaux

Once the creations are finished, children can take them with them when they leave the workshop. Some children choose to take their object home to keep it in their bedroom or show it to their friends and family. An activity carried out during a workshop then becomes something personal, which they can keep and share.

Community painting and murals : creating together

The community painting and mural workshops, led by the artist Victor Tricar, are aimed at young people aged 15 to 25. He offers a different approach, with a greater focus on collective creation.

Painting, first and foremost, provides a space for free experimentation. The community mural expands this experience to a different scale. Each participant contributes to a shared artwork that gradually takes shape through their individual contributions. A colour or pattern created by one person sits alongside that of another. The final result does not seek to erase these differences, but to allow them to coexist.

The introductory painting workshops and preparations for the community mural took place at Bâtiment 4 in Esch-sur-Alzette, where the artist has his studio. The mural created during the workshops now adorns the walls of the Maison Sourrire. Its presence lends a special dimension to the project: what was created together remains visible in the day-to-day life of the premises.

Participants can thus revisit their work, show it to their friends and family, and see that a creation in which they played a part is now an integral part of a shared space. Artistic practice therefore does not end with the time spent in the workshops; it leaves a tangible mark in a place frequented on a daily basis.

Beyond creation

The three workshops do not all have exactly the same goal and do not involve the same techniques. Photography encourages participants to observe and develop their own perspective. Kintsugi involves working directly with the material and discovering the possibilities for transforming an object. Painting and mural art place particular emphasis on collective creation.

What connects these workshops is the opportunity they give participants to do things for themselves. They are not merely spectators of a pre-planned activity: they take part in the process and can see their choices reflected in the final result.

Throughout the workshops, these experiences offer as many opportunities to develop one’s creativity as they do to gain confidence in one’s ability to try, learn and progress. They also enable participants to discover new skills and meet other people in a setting where everyone can contribute in their own way.

Creating, experimenting and sharing are all ways of being part of a project, a group and a place.