Nicosia: Inhabiting Edges (2017)

Cyprus is an island marked by a multiplicity of borders, concrete manifestations of social and political conflicts, which have affected the production and reproduction of landscapes and urban environments. Most noticeably, a buffer zone divides the island and the city of Nicosia in two parts, North and South, with existing crossing points accessible only since 2003.

Participants attended a series of seminars to critically understand the history and politics of Cyprus’ borders as a fundamental step to interpreting the divided urban realm of Nicosia. Here, participants navigated the city’s complexity, from its historic Walled City to the contemporary sprawls at its urban edges. They enquired into layers of perception and memory of the city’s division and explored the edges of its multiple borders, along with the ways these were re-appropriated, used, and inhabited. Importantly, they projected such explorations against the background of the future urban vision recently shaped by The Nicosia Master Plan – a unique case of bi-communal urban planning in an area of conflict.

The workshop aimed to contribute to the ongoing and contested debate on urban borders, seeking to introduce a shift in perspective on how border narratives were constantly constructed and deconstructed, negotiated, and contested. This shift was pursued by involving a multiplicity of stakeholders, from authorities to activists to local communities, and engaging with their discourses and everyday practices.