The International SoloFest is being held for the 6th time. SoloFest, led by Mordem Art and Ecological Living Association, began with great enthusiasm on Thursday, 16 October.

Solo Fest, organised every year in Diyarbakır by Mordem Sanat, will hold its 5th edition this year with the theme ‘Takas’ (Barter). The festival’s proceeds will be used for children in the earthquake zone.

Çarşema Zîpa, one of the most colourful nature-related traditions of Kurdish culture, is a spring festival that begins every year on the last Wednesday of February and is celebrated for three weeks according to the region’s ancient nature calendar. The ritual reflects a deep bond with earth, water and air, ancient beliefs and social solidarity.

Mordem Art and Ecological Living Association opened its festival themed ‘On the Verge of Disappearing’, part of its SoloFest6 programme for the new art season, with the ‘Yasak Serenat’ (Forbidden Serenade) concert by Armenian artist Stephan Epremyan.

The International SoloFest, held in Diyarbakır for the sixth time, began with a performance by Armenian artist Stephan Epremyan. This year the festival meets art lovers with the aim of protecting cultural heritage that is on the verge of disappearing.

Mordem Sanat Centre is also running art workshops, film screenings and play activities for children in the tent city in the Narlıkuyu area. At the entrance of the children’s tent it reads "Jîyan heye hevî her dem heyê" (As long as there is life, there will always be hope).

The award worth 400,000 TL, made possible by the donations of theatre artist Gülriz Sururi, will be given to Atta Festival and Mordem Sanat. With the support of the award, Atta Festival will stage the children’s play "Kabuk" (Shell) with young actors living in the earthquake zone. From October 2023, the play will be performed in the provinces affected by the earthquake, above all Hatay, Antep and Maraş.

The documentary “Nehre Su Taşımak” (Carrying Water to the River), directed by Mert Kaya and telling the story of 20 years of Anadolu Kültür, one of the leading actors of Türkiye’s arts and culture scene, will be screened at Mordem Sanat Centre in Diyarbakır on Saturday, 1 March at 19.00.

The Ayvalık International Film Festival, taking place on 16–21 September, will visit Diyarbakır after Ayvalık in cooperation with Mordem Sanat and with the support of Kültür için Alan. 10 films from the festival programme will be screened at Mordem Sanat in Diyarbakır on 24–25 September

Esmeray staged her latest play, "Olsun" (So Be It), in Diyarbakır for the first time as part of the events of the 25 November Week of Struggle Against Violence Against Women.

The theme of this year’s 4th International Solo Festival, organised by Mordem Sanat in Diyarbakır, is gender equality. Ticket revenue from the festival, which will take place between 27 October and 5 November, will be used for children affected by the earthquake.

The event will take place at Mordem Sanat Centre on 7–12 May in cooperation with the Delegation of the European Union to Türkiye, the European Union Information Centres Network and the DTSO Diyarbakır EU Information Centre. The event, at which 18 films from EU countries will be screened, will be open to the public and free of charge.

The workshop, to be held at Mordem Sanat in Diyarbakır in two sessions on 20–21 September, is open to applications from candidates from Diyarbakır, Batman and Mardin who work in performance and related fields. Places are limited and participation is free of charge

Dutch dancer Melissa Diktaş, one of the guest artists of the 5th Solo Fest organised by Mordem Sanat, gave audiences in Diyarbakır unforgettable moments with her piece ‘Çiçekli Elbiseli Evcilleşmemiş Yaratık’ (Untamed Creature in a Floral Dress).

The ‘Çarşema Zîpa’ ritual is being celebrated with various events in Kurdish cities. Çarşema Zîpa holds an important place in Kurdish culture and tradition. It begins at the start of March and continues for three Wednesdays. According to the Çarşema Zîpa ritual, if it rains on these Wednesdays, spring will be pleasant; if it does not, winter carries on. Festivities are held on those days.

The “Adıyaman Bir Arada Çocuk Şenliği” (Adıyaman Together Children’s Festival), part of the solidarity and psychosocial support work carried out in Adıyaman after the 6 February earthquakes, is preparing to bring children together with art, theatre, games and music for the second time this year.

Artists in Diyarbakır, who began to struggle to find venues as a result of the trustee (kayyum) policies, have in recent years turned to founding independent art centres. Among the art spaces large and small that have opened since 2017, one of the most talked-about is Mordem Sanat, built by Barış Işık and Savaş Işık.

The 3rd International solofest organised by Mordem Sanat began with the slogan "Rabirdûyê de Nehêle Ber Bi Dehatuyê ve Bibe” (Don’t Leave It in the Past, Carry It into the Future).

The Gülriz Sururi-Engin Cezzar Theatre Encouragement Award, presented for the fifth time by the Istanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts (İKSV), is supporting two teams that will work in the earthquake zone this year. With İKSV’s award support, Atta Festival will produce a new children’s play with young actors living in the earthquake zone. The workshops Mordem Sanat runs for young theatre-makers who will work in youth and children’s theatre in the earthquake zone will also be supported under the award.

Seven organisations – Mordem Sanat Centre, Wêjegeh Amed, A4 Atölye, Wephotos, the Migration and Humanitarian Aid Foundation, Merkezkaç Sanat Kolektifi and the Diyarbakır Chamber of Commerce and Industry – announced that they will hold the International Feqîyê Teyran Culture, Art and Nature Festival in Diyarbakır.

The Kino 2023 programme, which brings notable examples of contemporary German cinema to audiences in Türkiye, comes to Diyarbakır after Istanbul and Ankara. The screenings on 10–12 November will be held free of charge at Mordem Sanat.

The Solo Festival, held in Diyarbakır for the second time, has begun. Artists from the Kurdistan Region, Italy, the Netherlands, Iran and Azerbaijan will also take part in the festival, which will run at the Mordem Sanat Stage until 17 October.

The 2nd Solo Fest, held by Mordem Sanat and Ahura Theatre Cooperative with the support of Kültür için Alan, has begun. The event, which will meet audiences until 17 October, will feature solo shows, talks, a panel and a dengbêj recital. Speaking to our newspaper Evrensel, the event’s coordinator Barış Işık said: “People will both watch and have fun, and with every ticket they buy, they will enable children in villages to watch theatre for free.”