2013

Meeting World Heritage: 3 Cities 3 Heritage Sites

World heritage sites under the protection of UNESCO play an important role in the representation of the regions they are located in. However, the examination of these heritage sites from an artistic, participatory and critical viewpoint is a rarely encountered practice. This project aimed for young people to address heritage sites of international value by using creative methods, and for them to take a step towards claiming the historical and cultural heritage of their hometowns.

The 3 Cities 3 Heritage Sites that began in January 2013 is comprised of activities with high school and university students in Weimar, Essen and Istanbul. Total of 36 students (12 from the private Darüşşafaka High-school and 12 each from various high schools in Weimar and Essen) selected by open calls participated in the project.
Activities carried out with high-school students;

· Creative art workshops focusing on the topic of heritage accompanied by an instructor;
· Debates and workshops aiming to provide basic information on cultural heritage;
· Visits to cultural heritage sites designated by UNESCO in Weimar, Essen and Istanbul;
· International cultural heritage workshops to be held in Weimar, Essen and Istanbul;
· Development of a web site where the work produced and debates are shared.

As part of the project, two university students each from the three cities accompanied the work and visits in order to produce photography and video work on the cultural heritage sites. The six university students taking part in the project were provided with a grant of 1000 Euro each for the work they produced.

The Meeting World Heritage – Three Cities Three Heritage Sites Project was supported by the Mercator Foundation(Essen) and conducted by the partnership of Stiftung Zollverein (Essen), Klassik Stiftung Weimar (Weimar) and Anadolu Kültür (Istanbul).