Anadolu Kültür | January - February - March 2025
As the teams of Anadolu Kültür, Diyarbakır Arts Center and Depo, we continue to work in 2025 with the belief that sharing culture and art can foster mutual understanding and empathy.
Here comes the VAHA III hubs
The third round of the VAHA programme, which will run between January 2025 and May 2026, continues to promote a vibrant and inclusive cultural environment that reflects diverse voices and perspectives from across the wider European region, while supporting cultural actors and organisations in resisting oppression and discrimination through local and transnational collaborations, learning and mobility opportunities, and dynamic public programming.
The first call for hubs that are formed by culture, art, and civil society actors from 46 Council of Europe member countries and Kosovo to develop and implement local cultural and art programmes, opened on 19 December 2024 and closed on 2 February 2025. Out of 103 hub applications, 39 from Turkey and 64 from other countries, a total of eight new VAHA hubs, formed by 23 organisations, are selected. The selected hubs will carry out their cultural and artistic activities between April - November 2025.
To encourage the transnational networking and collaborations, a second open call will be made in summer, again for cultural and art organisations from Turkey, other Council of Europe countries and Kosovo.
The third round of the VAHA programme, which will run between January 2025 and May 2026, continues to promote a vibrant and inclusive cultural environment that reflects diverse voices and perspectives from across the wider European region, while supporting cultural actors and organisations in resisting oppression and discrimination through local and transnational collaborations, learning and mobility opportunities, and dynamic public programming.
The first call for hubs that are formed by culture, art, and civil society actors from 46 Council of Europe member countries and Kosovo to develop and implement local cultural and art programmes, opened on 19 December 2024 and closed on 2 February 2025. Out of 103 hub applications, 39 from Turkey and 64 from other countries, a total of eight new VAHA hubs, formed by 23 organisations, are selected. The selected hubs will carry out their cultural and artistic activities between April - November 2025.
To encourage the transnational networking and collaborations, a second open call will be made in summer, again for cultural and art organisations from Turkey, other Council of Europe countries and Kosovo.
Καρσί / Karşı was in Izmir
We held the kick-off meeting of Καρσί / Karşı: Gatherings Across the North Aegean in Izmir from 31 January to 2 February 2025, where representatives from the eight participating art initiatives met in person for the first time. In parallel to the meeting where the representatives started to learn about each other and the city, we organised the public programme Καρσί / Karşı Izmir Gathering on 1st February at Izmir Mimarlık Merkezi to explore the intersecting histories, memories, migrations, and ecologies of the North Aegean. This event included lectures and short screenings by Bruce Clark, Angela Melitopoulos & Kerstin Schroedinger and Hera Büyüktaşcıyan, who shared their works and insights on cross-cultural relationships across the North Aegean, followed by a moderated discussion.
In May and June, reciprocal visits of the local organisations will take place, offering public cultural events such as workshops, talks and discussions. You can follow the announcements and details on our social media accounts.
We held the kick-off meeting of Καρσί / Karşı: Gatherings Across the North Aegean in Izmir from 31 January to 2 February 2025, where representatives from the eight participating art initiatives met in person for the first time. In parallel to the meeting where the representatives started to learn about each other and the city, we organised the public programme Καρσί / Karşı Izmir Gathering on 1st February at Izmir Mimarlık Merkezi to explore the intersecting histories, memories, migrations, and ecologies of the North Aegean. This event included lectures and short screenings by Bruce Clark, Angela Melitopoulos & Kerstin Schroedinger and Hera Büyüktaşcıyan, who shared their works and insights on cross-cultural relationships across the North Aegean, followed by a moderated discussion.
In May and June, reciprocal visits of the local organisations will take place, offering public cultural events such as workshops, talks and discussions. You can follow the announcements and details on our social media accounts.
As of end of March 2025, the Yeniden project has completed its 13-month journey
In the final round of our Art-Based Psychosocial Support: Practitioner Trainings, we held the “Community-Based Music” workshop in Gaziantep, the “Creative Dance! Creative Movement!” workshop in Hatay and the “Conducting a Photography Workshop with Children” training in Mersin.
We had the chance to work one-on-one with 137 people in the local communities of practitioners we established. We helped empower people who finished the trainings and participated in child-related activities by giving them access to psychotherapy and financial support. Even after the planned project term, we did not stop collaborating to create new chances for them to continue working professionally or volunteering with civil society groups in the area.
We held 15 Art-Based Psychosocial Support: Practitioner Trainings and 6 Basic Trainings in three cities with the help and coordination of our local partners, Hatay Earthquake Solidarity, Kırkayak Kültür, and Maya Association.
We conducted art-based and rights-focused workshops for children in 21 districts of the three cities, working with 34 different institutions. We were able to reach 4,161 children with 376 sessions.
At Anadolu Kültür, we highly emphasise horizontal partnerships that are motivated by solidarity and consistent with our ideals. We want to express our sincere gratitude to our local coordinators, Hayrullah Ercik, Mert Aslanyürek, Özgür Yılmaz, and Yaren Sakar, as well as our local partners, Hatay Earthquake Solidarity, Kırkayak Kültür, and Maya Association, for this important partnership and for joining us in celebrating our shared resilience once more.
In the final round of our Art-Based Psychosocial Support: Practitioner Trainings, we held the “Community-Based Music” workshop in Gaziantep, the “Creative Dance! Creative Movement!” workshop in Hatay and the “Conducting a Photography Workshop with Children” training in Mersin.
We had the chance to work one-on-one with 137 people in the local communities of practitioners we established. We helped empower people who finished the trainings and participated in child-related activities by giving them access to psychotherapy and financial support. Even after the planned project term, we did not stop collaborating to create new chances for them to continue working professionally or volunteering with civil society groups in the area.
We held 15 Art-Based Psychosocial Support: Practitioner Trainings and 6 Basic Trainings in three cities with the help and coordination of our local partners, Hatay Earthquake Solidarity, Kırkayak Kültür, and Maya Association.
We conducted art-based and rights-focused workshops for children in 21 districts of the three cities, working with 34 different institutions. We were able to reach 4,161 children with 376 sessions.
At Anadolu Kültür, we highly emphasise horizontal partnerships that are motivated by solidarity and consistent with our ideals. We want to express our sincere gratitude to our local coordinators, Hayrullah Ercik, Mert Aslanyürek, Özgür Yılmaz, and Yaren Sakar, as well as our local partners, Hatay Earthquake Solidarity, Kırkayak Kültür, and Maya Association, for this important partnership and for joining us in celebrating our shared resilience once more.
Spaces of Culture Co-production Funding 2025
There were 126 applications for the Spaces of Culture Co-production Funding 2025 call. This year, unlike previous years, there was a requirement to apply with two partners, one from Turkey and one from abroad, so the applications diversified in terms of both cities and countries. In addition to a partner from Turkey, projects with one partner each from the members of Spaces of Culture, Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden and France, were evaluated by the Spaces of Culture team. Ten projects eligible for support will be announced on April 25th. After the budget updates of the projects to be supported and the signing of the contracts, the project implementation schedule will start on May 12th. After the completion of the projects, which will continue throughout the summer and fall months, the final reporting will be due November 25th, 2025.
There were 126 applications for the Spaces of Culture Co-production Funding 2025 call. This year, unlike previous years, there was a requirement to apply with two partners, one from Turkey and one from abroad, so the applications diversified in terms of both cities and countries. In addition to a partner from Turkey, projects with one partner each from the members of Spaces of Culture, Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden and France, were evaluated by the Spaces of Culture team. Ten projects eligible for support will be announced on April 25th. After the budget updates of the projects to be supported and the signing of the contracts, the project implementation schedule will start on May 12th. After the completion of the projects, which will continue throughout the summer and fall months, the final reporting will be due November 25th, 2025.
Antep: Post-Earthquake Assessment of Architectural Heritage at Risk report will be published in April
“Antep: Post-Earthquake Assessment of Architectural Heritage at Risk” project, which we realized as part of the Support to the Armenia-Turkey Normalisation Process (ATNP: Rapid Responses), brought together experts from Armenia and Turkey for workshops and field studies. The experts worked on the reporting of the data collected during the preliminary research and site visits and they reported on 123 historic buildings and sites.
The data obtained from this work, which examined the post-earthquake conditions of various structures in the centre and rural areas of Antep, has been prepared as a report in Turkish and English. This research fulfils the requirements of the discipline of historic preservation with meticulous study and documentation; identification of the values and problems of the surviving cultural assets of production, trade, education, and cultural life; and ultimately contributes to our understanding of the multi-layered past of Antep.
The report aims to contribute to the methods of research and conservation of the cultural heritage of the region after the earthquake.
“Antep: Post-Earthquake Assessment of Architectural Heritage at Risk” project, which we realized as part of the Support to the Armenia-Turkey Normalisation Process (ATNP: Rapid Responses), brought together experts from Armenia and Turkey for workshops and field studies. The experts worked on the reporting of the data collected during the preliminary research and site visits and they reported on 123 historic buildings and sites.
The data obtained from this work, which examined the post-earthquake conditions of various structures in the centre and rural areas of Antep, has been prepared as a report in Turkish and English. This research fulfils the requirements of the discipline of historic preservation with meticulous study and documentation; identification of the values and problems of the surviving cultural assets of production, trade, education, and cultural life; and ultimately contributes to our understanding of the multi-layered past of Antep.
The report aims to contribute to the methods of research and conservation of the cultural heritage of the region after the earthquake.
Depo
From January to March, Depo presented the exhibitions Three Doors developed by Forensic Architecture/Forensis, the Initiative 19. Februar Hanau and the Initiative in Remembrance of Oury Jalloh; I Had Something in Mind, a selection of works by artist and academic Gülçin Aksoy who passed away in 2024, and We Are Still Here, which featured works by young artists affected by the Maraş earthquakes.
This year’s SaturDox Documentary Screenings, organised by Depo in collaboration with Documentarist, is taking place between March 22nd and May 31st. As part of the screening programme titled Stories of Struggle from the Global South, six important documentaries from Palestine, Lebanon, Sudan, Egypt, Syria and Congo will be screened, with the films from Palestine, Lebanon and Syria followed by in-depth conversations with speakers from each on what’s currently unfolding in their contexts.
Read more.
From January to March, Depo presented the exhibitions Three Doors developed by Forensic Architecture/Forensis, the Initiative 19. Februar Hanau and the Initiative in Remembrance of Oury Jalloh; I Had Something in Mind, a selection of works by artist and academic Gülçin Aksoy who passed away in 2024, and We Are Still Here, which featured works by young artists affected by the Maraş earthquakes.
This year’s SaturDox Documentary Screenings, organised by Depo in collaboration with Documentarist, is taking place between March 22nd and May 31st. As part of the screening programme titled Stories of Struggle from the Global South, six important documentaries from Palestine, Lebanon, Sudan, Egypt, Syria and Congo will be screened, with the films from Palestine, Lebanon and Syria followed by in-depth conversations with speakers from each on what’s currently unfolding in their contexts.
Read more.
Feeding the River: 20 Years of Anadolu Kültür documentary Diyarbakır screening
Feeding the River: 20 Years of Anadolu Kültür was screened in Diyarbakır on March 1, 2025 at the Mordem Art Center with a large number of viewers. The screening was attended by Diyarbakır MPs, metropolitan and district co-mayors and NGO representatives, as well as many writers and artists whose paths have passed through the Diyarbakır Art Center. After the screening, DSM project coordinator Özkan Küçük moderated a talk and Asena Günal, Övgü Gökçe Yaşa and Ezel Yılmaz from the Anadolu Kültür team answered questions from the audience. The audience said that their first acquaintance with art took place with the activities at DSM and shared the effects of the culture and arts activities carried out since the early 2000s on the city.
Feeding the River: 20 Years of Anadolu Kültür was screened in Diyarbakır on March 1, 2025 at the Mordem Art Center with a large number of viewers. The screening was attended by Diyarbakır MPs, metropolitan and district co-mayors and NGO representatives, as well as many writers and artists whose paths have passed through the Diyarbakır Art Center. After the screening, DSM project coordinator Özkan Küçük moderated a talk and Asena Günal, Övgü Gökçe Yaşa and Ezel Yılmaz from the Anadolu Kültür team answered questions from the audience. The audience said that their first acquaintance with art took place with the activities at DSM and shared the effects of the culture and arts activities carried out since the early 2000s on the city.