Space of Culture and Nefes for Arts and Culture
Although Gaziantep is one of the cities that have been subjected to constant waves of large internal and external migration, the city was influenced by the multiculturalism that resulted from these waves. Therefore, the city lacks fine cultural and artistic production. Despite the efforts of the local authorities to open many cultural centers to create a cultural, artistic and historical image of the city, these centers did not live up to the expectations of artists as spaces of interaction and creativity. Furthermore, Syrian artists are more influenced by the scarcity of these cultural spaces since they miss the rich artistic and cultural situation that existed in Syria.
However, with the establishment of Nefes for Arts and Culture and the beginning its music courses for young people, we found that these courses created a social space that gave young people the opportunity to meet and exchange artistic and cultural experiences. When we felt the need for greater space for artistic and cultural exchange, we began the cooperation with Space of Culture Program, which aims to support artistic centers and cultural actors in the Turkish cities of Izmir, Gaziantep and Diyarbakir. In its first year, the program implemented five projects in each of these cities.
Space of Culture Program is currently organizing a series of events in the three cities in order to enable and enhance interaction among local communities, cultural actors, artists and the public. As the program began to achieve its first goal by creating a network of artistic and cultural groups. The program sought to enable these groups to present their visions and performances. Thus, this program believes that creating space for culture and arts requires cultural management capable of working within different concepts and frameworks. Although there is no clear solution to this problem, Nefes continues to ask questions and propose solutions to reach a sustainable cultural and artistic space in Gaziantep.