Mehmet Çalhan and Mesut Dinler from Istanbul, were supported with the Turkey-Armenia Travel Grant to visit Yerevan to explore modern architectural heritage and the urban fabric and to meet Urban Lab, an architectural firm specialized in urban design and architectural conservation.
Mehmet Çalhan
“Despite being from a neighbouring country and having travelled a lot in the region, Armenia was rather an unknown to us. It is always hard to guess what to expect from a country, particularly one with many issues related to our common past. The subject of Armenia is shrouded in misinformation and is rather taboo in Turkey. During our visit our inherent prejudices were broken down and we felt sorry for the lost century we had been apart. We came across many remnants of our commonalities as well as differences. It was a great opportunity to see reassuring like minded people trying to shift the focus back towards our shared past and building a future based on dialogue and collaboration of the two neighbouring countries.”
Mesut Dinler
“I went to Armenia with lots of questions in my head, I returned with even more questions. “Can we really construct a common future?” was the main question I returned with. I believe the answer is obviously positive, but to find the tools of a better future, we have to know each other more, talk to each other more. So we are happy to be a part of those who communicated.”