Erbil, Kurdistan Region – July 16, 2026 – Four heritage houses are being transformed into the Araban Cultural District, the Kurdistan Region’s first dedicated cultural district.
Established by the Kurdistan Center for Arts and Culture (KCAC), the district is located within the buffer zone of the UNESCO World Heritage-listed Citadel of Erbil. The restored buildings will return historic architecture to active civic use as the Araban Gallery, the House of Manuscripts, and two learning centres created to strengthen the Region’s cultural workforce.
The four houses have been under restoration since 2024. Once completed, they will form an interconnected cultural campus supporting exhibitions, manuscript preservation, archival research, public programmes, and professional training.
The project introduces a heritage-led regeneration model that preserves historic architecture while adapting it for contemporary cultural use. It also responds to the limited availability of specialist training for archivists, conservators, curators, researchers, and cultural administrators. Moreover, it reflects KCAC’s commitment to building institutions that honour inherited heritage while creating meaningful opportunities for future generations.
“Trust that what is built carefully, with great intention, endures — and that what endures, in time, becomes worthy of the inheritance it carries,” said Barav Barzanî, Founder and President of KCAC.
A Historic Quarter Given New Cultural Purpose
The Araban Cultural District stands near the Citadel of Erbil, one of the city’s most recognisable historic landmarks and a place that reflects successive periods of settlement, urban development, and cultural exchange.
Around the Citadel, Erbil’s older quarters preserve traces of the city’s traditional urban life. Their courtyards, brickwork, passages, and domestic architectural forms hold the memories of generations who lived and worked within them.
As older structures disappear, cities risk losing not only physical landmarks but also the stories they embody. The restoration of the four houses seeks to protect this inheritance by returning the buildings to everyday public life. Rather than remaining closed monuments or unused remnants of the past, they will become working cultural spaces where people can encounter art and participate in workshops.
Restoration work has focused on retaining the architectural identity of the houses. Original elements and materials are being preserved and repaired wherever possible, allowing the structures to maintain their historic character while accommodating their new cultural functions. The houses will remain connected to the history of their surroundings while serving artists, researchers, students, professionals, residents, and visitors of the present.
KCAC’s institutional development is supported by international consultants whose clients include the Smithsonian and the Riyadh Cultural District. Their involvement contributes to the district’s governance, operational planning, collection policies, programme development, and long-term institutional strategy.
Four Houses Form One Cultural Area
Each of the four houses will serve a distinct purpose within the district, but their programmes will be closely connected.
The Araban Gallery builds on KCAC’s curatorial work by providing a permanent venue for contemporary and historical exhibitions, commissions, research-led projects, public discussions, and exchanges between artists from Kurdistan and the wider region.
The House of Manuscripts will be dedicated to the preservation, digitisation, study, and presentation of rare written materials. Specialised archival equipment and environmental systems will help protect fragile collections, while digitised versions will expand access for researchers and Kurdish communities worldwide.
The two remaining heritage houses will operate as learning centres for cultural professionals. Their programmes will cover archiving, conservation, collection management, curatorial practice, exhibition production, publishing, research, digital documentation, and cultural administration.
Together, the four houses will connect preservation, learning, and cultural production.
Expanding Access to Kurdistan’s Written Heritage
The development of the Araban Cultural District builds on the rapid growth of the KCAC Archive, which preserves and provides access to books, manuscripts, photographs, periodicals, newspapers, and historical documents from collections across Kurdistan.
In 2025, the archive digitised 3,676 items across 41 collections. Its online resources generated approximately two million interactions from 60,000 users worldwide, reflecting growing interest in reliable digital materials related to Kurdish history, literature, art, and cultural life.
KCAC also initiated the digitisation of 4,000 rare manuscripts in collaboration with the University of Exeter and the British Library’s Endangered Archives Programme. The project will safeguard vulnerable written materials while making digital copies available for research and long-term study.
By restoring historic buildings and equipping them for active cultural use, KCAC is creating infrastructure intended to endure beyond individual exhibitions or projects. The Araban Cultural District will preserve the character of the quarter while supporting the people, knowledge, and institutions that will shape the Region’s cultural future.
Further details about the opening, inaugural exhibitions, manuscript collections, training programmes, and international partnerships will be announced as restoration and institutional development progress.
To learn more, please visit https://kcac.org/en/.
About the Kurdistan Center for Arts and Culture
The Kurdistan Center for Arts and Culture (KCAC) is an Erbil-based cultural institution dedicated to preserving, developing, and sharing Kurdistan’s heritage, arts, and cultural record. Its work spans archives, exhibitions, residencies, publishing, translation, research, public programming, and professional capacity-building. Through regional and international collaboration, KCAC supports artists, researchers, writers, and cultural practitioners while expanding public access to Kurdish history and culture. The organisation is also developing the Araban Cultural District, the Kurdistan Region’s first dedicated cultural district, which will bring four restored heritage houses into active use as a gallery, manuscript house, and two learning centres.
Instagram: @kcac_kurdistan
Media ContactCompany Name: Kurdistan Center for Arts and CultureContact Person: Fateh Rebar, Head of Public RelationsEmail: Send EmailPhone: +964 750 145 1007Country: IraqWebsite: https://kcac.org/en/
