Historic of the project



    Historic

    The project "Mediterranean Convergences" was one of the first idea proposed by the founders of the NGO Heart of Damascus, 10 months before the official opening of the NGO . The first idea was to develop a festival, shared between France and Syria, with painters, sculptors, poets and musician. The idea was too complex, and futher we think only between poets and painters.

    In July 2006, we visited the Syrian Minister of Culture, and obtained a first agreement to start developing the idea. Then, during one year, we met artists of Syria, France and convainced them to join the project, and the cause of the NGO.

    In April 2007, we obtained RV with the Director Committee "Damas 2008, Arab Capital of Culture", Mrs Hanan Kassab Hassan (director), and Mrs Rania Samara (director of poetry). We met also Elias Zayat (direction of painting) and many people (impliqués) dans les affaires culturelles en Syrie. All people confort us in the way of project development.

    The name of "Mediterranean Convergences" was proposed during a brainstrorming in Spring 2007 by Serge-André Mahé and Bernar Mialet.

    The current concept of the project was proposed by Ahmad Moualla. Many parts of the project were proposed by artists, as the workshop for children proposed by Sara Shamma.

    The committee retained our idea, but finally didn't accept to give us they patronage, because our project was complex, linked with preservation of heritage, a very sensible subject in Damascus. Because, in the first project, we planed to restaure a magnificient house, which is an ancient school, and ancient president palace, in the King Faisal Street region (Al Amara). Because this house was on the way to destruction for building an autostrad.

    A few weeks later, we submitted the project to the European Delagation of Syria, but we knew our chances to succes were low without the patronage of Damascus 2008. We were pre-selected amoung the best projects, obtaining a general good notemark, but as we predicted, we were not selected in last five projects choosen for financial support.

    We continued with other projects, and in the same time, we have redesigned this project.

    The associates
    Associates who initiated the project are the Relevements Poetiques Association, the Damascus Junior Chamber of Commerce (JCI), the Moustafa Ali Foundation, and the Cervantes Institute of Damascus.