ASSESSMENT REPORT FOR THE HERITAGE CAMPUSES OF 2001

France | Germany | Greece

FRANCE - Aregno Campus (Corsica)

Situation and objectives of the campus
The campus was held in a traditional farm in the village of Aregno, in the region of Balagna, in north-western Corsica.
This farm presents several interesting features of rural heritage, tracing the various stages of wheat production: a mill, a cattle enclosure (vaccaghja), a threshing-floor, an aqueduct and the main building.
The threshing-floor (Aghja), with a 22.5 metre circumference, is particularly interesting. It is built in granite on an outcrop: it could be used as a stage if the site were to become a cultural events venue.
The campus had two objectives:
- To rediscover the location’s past by exploring its history, its heritage and its original agricultural vocation.
- To give the site a new purpose by creating a venue for cultural events such as concerts or theatre performances, making use of all the interesting features.

Campus partners
The campus was led in Corsica by the Corsican Agency for the Environment – heritage department, under the responsibility of M. Charles Pasqualini, in partnership with a regional development organisation (Association du Pays de Balagne) and a specialised cultural events initiative called Festivoce.
Festivoce’s objective is to encourage the discovery of Corsica’s musical heritage. The group organises a musical festival and art events in Pignes, a few miles from Aregno.

Corsican Agency for the Environment
Office de l’Environnement de la Corse
Charles Pasqualini
Tél. : 33 (0)4 95 45 04 00 — Fax : 95 45 04 01
Email : pasqualini@oec.fr

Association Pays de Balagne
Toni Casalonga (Président)
Tél. : 33 (0)4 95 61 39 39 — Fax : 33(0)4 95 61 34 33
Email : SivomDeBelgodere@wanadoo.fr

Participants
The campus brought together a dozen participants from France, Romania and Morocco, with ages ranging from 22 to 27.
The group included historians, architects, two cultural events specialists, an ethnologist and a regional development expert.

Campus programme
Work programme
Week 1: Discovery of the site and its history. Identification of development possibilities and related issues. Study of the history of agriculture in Corsica in general terms and, specifically, in relation to the farm hosting the campus. Detailed survey of heritage features. Primary steps towards development proposals.
Week 2: Plans for a performance to be held on the restitution day of the campus results, with the purpose of presenting the cultural potential of the site to the local population of Aregno. Development of the layout of the threshing floor. Further development proposals.
Week 3: Development proposals are finalised. The exhibition is set up. A final restitution is carried out, with a performance for the campus partners and the inhabitants of Aregno.



Campus life
The campus team enjoyed the nearby beach as well as the exceptional local heritage and a few cultural events. They hiked in the Bonifatu forest, listened to polyphonic singing in Calvi and attended an event at the Pignes auditorium.

Results
Campus participants were able to formulate proposals for the development and layout of the site, with the potential of turning it into a venue for artistic creation whilst integrating its historical features. The intention of these proposals is to host cultural events whilst remaining open to the public throughout the year in order to showcase the rural heritage that is characteristic of Corsican tradition.

- Participants planned a discovery circuit, including an eco-museum of traditions and heritage linked to the local production of wheat.

- They carried out surveys and drew up maps.

- They carried out a study of site-access problems encountered as a result of development proposals (parking requirements, access limitations).

- They set up the threshing-floor (Aghja) as a venue for theatre performances. Because of its condition, size and situation, it could be an ideal open stage. Some restoration work was carried out to the floor during the campus : clearing away the weeds and bushes, consolidation of the paving stones and the low walls, etc.

- They made some basic stage-design suggestions (lighting, public access, seating, etc.)

The Campus raised awareness among local inhabitants regarding the important role of cultural events in regional development, notably thanks to the well-established work of Festivoce aiming at enhancing public appreciation of regional cultures, particularly in the area of music. Consequently, the population welcomed the proposals of the campus participants enthusiastically. The students staged a performance, in the course of the project’s restitution day, that enabled spectators to glimpse the potential of the site as a venue for artistic endeavour.

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GERMANY - Lohra Campus (Thuringe)

Situation and objectives of the campuss
The castle of Lohra is located in central Germany, in the region of north Thuringe.
It is situated on the edge of a nature reserve, surrounded by hills and beautiful scenery. The castle of Lohra is one of the biggest in the area. It dates back to the Middle Ages. Today, the site includes about fifteen buildings from different periods. The basic structures such as the fortifications are medieval. Notable features include a ruined 11th Century tower, a Gothic and Romanesque double chapel, a manor house from the Renaissance period, a group of buildings from the 17th Century and stables and grain stores that were built in the 19th Century.
The Arbeitskreis Denkmalpflege organisation set about restoring the castle at the beginning of the nineties. The objective of this campus was to formulate proposals for plans and development schemes, mainly in order to improve the castle’s capacity to host artistic events and performances. Participants were expected to present new proposals.

Campus partners
AKD (Arbeitskreis Denkmalpflege) was set up in 1990 after the fall of the Berlin wall, with the aim of channelling voluntary efforts into restoring the historical heritage of the ex-GDR, which had deteriorated during several decades of Communist rule.
Another organisation (Offene Haüser) was set up with the purpose of managing projects that could bring life back to the buildings and monuments restored by AKD.


Arbeitskreis Denkmalpflege :
Bert Ludwig
Tél. : 49 36 43 502 879 — Fax : 49 36 43 851 117
Email : akdenkmalpflege@t-online.de

Offene Haüser
Tél. : 49 36 43 502 390 — Fax : 49 36 43 851 117
Email : offenehaueser@t-online.de
Site Web : www.openhouse.de

Participants
The campus brought together 22 students from Germany, France, Great Britain, Italy, Romania, Ukraine, Lithuania and Serbia.
Participants contributed a variety of skills : architecture, music, economy, tourism, fine arts, photography and communication, regional development and environmental issues.

Campus programme
Work programme:
The Campus began with two days during which the participants could become acquainted with the castle, using surveys, photographs and by exploring the site. Group dynamics were established spontaneously.
Following this, the partner organisations expressed their expectations and the students were given some historical background.
Three work groups were set up, each one with the brief of designing a proposal for the development of cultural activities and improvement of the castle’s amenities.
Campus life:
Despite bad weather, the group turned out to be cohesive, dynamic and enthusiastic. These qualities were enhanced by the good living conditions (in some of the buildings on site), the exceptional setting and the meals eaten together.

Results
The campus contributed to a long-term general project for the cultural development of Lohra castle. The students presented three proposals for enhancing the layout and accessibility of the castle’s buildings and immediate vicinity. These proposals were articulated around the artistic vocation of the site : hosting artist residencies, work sessions for musical groups, choirs or theatre companies in rehearsal. For some buildings, the proposals were based on precise surveys. For others, the plans used were not so precise.

- One of the groups advocated reducing the castle’s access to tourists, retaining only the main building, the ruined tower and the double chapel for public viewing.

- One project suggested developing the potential of the site as a centre for hosting events such as professional seminars and welcoming study groups.

- In order to reinforce the coherence between the castle’s development policy and regional development plans, one of the groups also proposed that part of the castle should be used to promote regional craft and art, by hosting exhibitions and training craftspeople and amateurs in traditional craft techniques.

- Finally, one of the projects sought to focus the organisers’ attention on the priority of integrating the castle of Lohra into a network of similar sites and monuments with a cultural vocation within a hundred kilometres around Weimar.

In the course of the heritage days that were held during the campus, the castle hosted an open-day with the active participation of campus students. They were able to explain the campus to visitors. They provided theatre and concert performances and put together an exhibition on the progress of campus work. This event contributed to improving the local population’s knowledge of the castle.

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GREECE - Veria Campus

Situation and objectives
60 000 people live in the Byzantine city of Veria, to the northwest of Thessalonica, not far from the famous tombs of the Macedonian kings.
At the southwestern end of the city, the Jewish quarter of Barbouta can be only be accessed at two points : a passage under one of the houses in Merarchias Street and a bridge over the river. The centre of this neighbourhood is an open space surrounded by houses.
In the northern corner of Barbouta, the synagogue stands in an alignment with the houses, on the site of a very ancient synagogue mentioned by the Apostle Paul in 57 AD. The present building was built in 1850, on the orders of the reigning Sultan, and is one of the oldest buildings of the Jewish quarter.
This part of the town was built in its current form between 1859 and1883. The Jewish residents abandoned it in 1943 and the houses were sold to new owners after 1948.
Since 1995, after decades of being neglected, the buildings are undergoing complete renovation under the auspices of the city council. As yet, this work has not been accompanied by a matching policy to revitalise the area with permanent social structures and activities.

Campus partners
The City of Veria and the Veria Centre for Cultural Initiatives led the campus. The public works company Hephaistos, in charge of carrying out the Barbouta restoration work also took part in its organisation, as did the University of Thessalonica.

Centre for cultural initiative and communications
M. Giannis Hassiotis, Président, maire de Veria
Tél. : 30 331 62 548 / 22 967 — Fax : 331 27 914
E-mail : Kppever@VerNet.gr ou venustl@otenet.gr

Participants
Fifteen students from Greece, Romania, Ireland, France and Slovakia took part, with skills and experience ranging from history of art to musicology and including general history, architecture and cultural events production.

Campus programme
Work programme:
The students and the organisers spent a day in discussion and planning. Following this meeting, the campus objectives were revised in order to be more adapted to the students’ experience and to make better use of their potential. The campus objectives were finalised around the need to propose a permanent global cultural project based on the rich heritage of the neighbourhood.
Several guests were invited to help the participants discover the history of Barbouta and its region. Stage management and acoustics specialists also explained the possibilities and the constraints linked to the organisation of cultural events in Barbouta.
Two work groups were put together in order to propose two separate cultural projects. These projects were designed progressively throughout the duration of the campus, based on precise surveys of the site, on its history as well as on encounters with the inhabitants, the council, local experts, etc.
The proposed projects were described in a exhibition and presented to the inhabitants of Barbouta at the end of the campus.
Campus life:
Participants were lodged close to Veria. A cook called Petros fed them and introduced them to Greek cooking.
The strong motivation of the students and the intensity of the work did not prevent them from engaging in several leisure pursuits : visiting Thessalonica, seaside excursions, etc.

Results
The campus was able to draw attention to the need for a global cultural project, making the council and the population aware of Barbouta’s potential for sustainable revitalisation.
The campus also enabled the inhabitants to discover some of their rich heritage and history, of which they had previously been relatively unaware.
One of the concerns that the students expressed was the need to avoid a passive “museum-like” spirit that would concentrate exclusively on tourism and events. At the outcome of the campus, proposals centred on the following issues:

- An overall tourist vocation for the neighbourhood that is not merely focussed on welcoming tourists and visitors, but that also provides for the expression of vital local creativity.

- Artistic activity and creative policies that are applied throughout the year, with artist residencies, open workshops, etc.

- A desire to explore the origins of the neighbourhood, enhancing and developing the site’s history and architectural features that are characteristic of Jewish culture in Greece: planners must not impose a tourism logic that could extinguish the memory of the place.

- The organisation of a few key events, framed by a global development policy, based on the central square, for which some gentle lay-out changes were proposed.

All the proposals were drawn up on the basis of accurate surveys (photos, drawings) and the projects were designed with the help of maps, plans and models. They were presented to the population in the course of an open day on 30th August 2002, which was much appreciated.

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