The Turquoise Mountain Foundation is a
non-governmental organization legally established in
Scotland. It takes its name from
Turquoise Mountain
Firozkoh ( Persian: فیروزکوه, ''Fīrōzkōh''), or Turquoise Mountain, was the summer capital of the Ghurid dynasty, in the Ghor Province of central Afghanistan. It was reputedly one of the greatest cities of its age, but was destroyed ...
and initially focused on the enhancement of the
Afghanistan craft industry.
[Felicia Craddock]
In Afghanistan, Creating Jewelry in the Midst of Conflict
''New York Times'' (September 11, 2014). The organization subsequently expanded its work to
Jordan,
Saudi Arabia, and
Myanmar
Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John C. Wells, Joh ...
(Burma).
History and activities
Turquoise Mountain was founded in 2006 by
King Charles III (then the
Prince of Wales) in partnership with President of Afghanistan
Hamid Karzai, and British writer, academic and former politician
Rory Stewart, a former
Conservative member of Parliament.
Stewart was chief executive of the foundation from 2005 to 2008; the current chief executive is his wife Shoshana Stewart.
Among the charity's projects was the Turquoise Mountain Institute for Afghan Arts and Architecture, a school for the study of traditional Afghan
calligraphy
Calligraphy (from el, link=y, καλλιγραφία) is a visual art related to writing. It is the design and execution of lettering with a pen, ink brush, or other writing instrument. Contemporary calligraphic practice can be defined as "t ...
,
ceramics,
woodworking and
jewelry-making
Jewellery design is the art or profession of designing and creating jewellery. This is one of civilization's earliest forms of decoration, dating back at least 7,000 years to the oldest known human societies in Indus Valley Civilization, Mesopo ...
.
Many of the Institute's graduates are
Afghan women
Women's rights in Afghanistan have oscillated back and forth depending on the time period. After King Amanullah Khan's attempts to modernize the country in the 1920s, women officially gained equality under the 1964 Constitution. However, th ...
.
Turquoise Mountain also largely funded a major restoration project in
Murad Khane
Murad Khane ( prs, مراد خانی) is a district of the old city in Kabul, Afghanistan. It lies just north of the Kabul River and is part of the city District 2.
History
Murad Khane was named after two Murad Khans: one the brother of a 17th-ce ...
, the old town of
Kabul, encompassing the restoration of over 150 buildings in the neighborhood.
[Alisa Tang]
Kabul's old city gets a new look
''New York Times'' (February 1, 2008).
The group describes its mission as "to preserve and regenerate historic areas and communities with a rich cultural heritage and to revive traditional crafts, to create jobs, skills and a renewed sense of pride." Funding has been provided by a number of public and private donors from both the
West and
Middle East,
including the
United States Agency for International Development (USAID),
Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), the Government of Afghanistan, the Government of India, the
Blue Moon Fund
The W. Alton Jones Foundation was a charitable foundation, and a sponsor of environmental causes. It was originally involved in sponsoring the arts, particularly theatre.
The foundation was started in 1944 by W. Alton "Pete" Jones, an oil execut ...
,
Reach Out To Asia
Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development ( ar, مؤسسة قطر) is a state-led non-profit organization in Qatar, founded in 1995 by then-emir Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani and his second wife Moza bint Nasser. Qatar Founda ...
, the Kathy Evans Afghan Education Trust, The Bonita Trust,
The Prince's Charities, The Kingdom of Bahrain, the Amir of Kuwait, the Alwaleed Bin Talal Foundation (Saudi Arabia) and the
British Council.
The infamous scene in British film-maker
Adam Curtis's 2015 documentary
Bitter Lake (film) of an English art teacher enthusiastically extolling the meaning of
Marcel Duchamp’s conceptual artwork,
Fountain (Duchamp), an inverted male urinal, to a group of recently liberated and incredulous Afghan women, is held to have occurred under the auspices of the Turquoise Mountain Foundation.
In 2019 the Turquoise Mountain Foundation took over the activities of ''Arzu - Studios of Hope in Afghanistan''. Arzu received a
Skoll Award in 2008.
[Turquoise Mountain took over the weaving centres of ARZU Studio Hope]
/ref>
Alumni
* Samira Kitman
References
External links
Turquoise Mountain Foundation
Turquoise Mountain Arts
*
{{Charles, Prince of Wales
Development charities based in the United Kingdom
Charities based in Scotland
The Prince's Charities
New Classical architecture
Foreign charities operating in Afghanistan