continued from page 7...

The Turquoise Mountain Foundation believes that the preservation of Afghan culture
is vitally and urgently linked to the country’s much needed economic, social, and
urban regeneration.

Turquoise Mountain’s work has several aspects, including the regeneration of Murad Khane,
a unique area of religious pluralism, civic life and tradition in the Old City of Kabul, and
the creation of a School of Traditional Afghan Arts and Architecture. Turquoise Mountain’s
newest and most exciting program is the addition of a ceramics and tile school, in partnership
with our work in preserving Istalif.

The Ceramics School

The Turquoise Mountain Foundation established The School for Traditional Afghan Arts
and Architecture in March 2006. It trains over seventy young craftsmen who are divided
between the woodworking, the calligraphy and ceramics schools. The courses are run by some
of Afghanistan’s most distinguished master ustads. Ustad Honartar 1s one of Afghanistan’s
most prominent ceramicists and has over forty years experience in his craft.

The ceramics school will help Afghan potters create new markets based on their traditional
artistic skills and will provide training in marketing and promotion, branding and product
design. Ustad Honariar has already designed a curriculum to incorporate traditional Timurid
designs and the use of modern lead-free glazes and higher-quality clay. Thus a connection
with Afghanistan’s rich cultural history will be restored through the preservation of traditional
techniques and increased quality of production, which will in turn support the creation of
economic opportunities for a whole generation of young Afghan craftsmen.

The Istalif Resource Center

Turquoise Mountain has been working closely with the potters’ community in Istalif for the
last six months and has recently been given a site on which to build a permanent resource
and research centre in the village. The site is situated on a mountain terrace with breathtaking
views of the Shomali plain to the east and the Hindu Kush Mountains to the west. The
current buildings are in a state of disrepair and will need to be expanded to provide the
necessary facilities to support the local potters. We plan to build a gas kiln, a workshop, a
laboratory for testing glazes, and a library, all of which will be available to the potters from the
local community. The resource centre will also allow visiting foreign experts a place to work
alongside the Istalifi potters to help improve their products for an international market.

The Preservation of Istalif’s Social, Cultural, and Natural Environment

Turquoise Mountain 1s working closely with the local elders and the district authorities of Istalif to set up and
implement an integrated plan for the preservation of Istalif’s social, cultural, and natural environment. This is
an urgent need. Developers are already constructing unsightly concrete buildings in the centre of the village
and if the traditional fabric of this beautiful mountain village is to be preserved, substantial funding will be
needed to implement this plan.

Turquoise Mountain has made significant initial progress, but support from the international ceramics
community is important to our ability to continue and expand our work in Istalif and the rest of Afghanistan.
This work is based on successful development models which show that the preservation of indigenous
culture can be directly linked to social and economic development. Istalif presents a unique opportunity to
support the revival of a traditional craft and to empower a community to drive the reconstruction of their
town of 50,000 people.

Turquoise Mountain is in need of support for this project. To find out more about Turquoise
Mountain’s work in Istalif or to make a financial contribution, please contact Noah Coburn, the Istalif
Project Manager, at: ceramics@turquoisemountain.org. You may also contribute online at our website:

www.turquoisemountain.org, article courtesy of Noah Coburn

Eee

Traditional Afghcan pottery

Afghan potter

Tstalif, Afghanistan