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About mesarch

Vision

The term mesarch combines Mesogeios (Greek for Mediterrenean), Middle East, Architecture and Archive. The term also exists in Botanology as “the maturing of the center toward both the interior and exterior,” and this is also in tune with the Mesarch Lab’s outlook on modernism, that challenges center-periphery models to treat Eastern Mediterranean histories of modernism as complexly entangled with European and global modernisms.

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Since its establishment in 2010, the Mesarch Lab is conducting critical historical research on: Architecture/urbanism and politics in 20th Century Eastern Mediterranean; Histories of urban development and environmental sustainability; Cultural heritage, memory and conflict; Digital humanities and architectural archives.

Activity

The Mesarch Lab is involved with a range of activities that connect research, education and practice, bringing together a network of scholars, researchers, and educators, both within the Department of Architecture at the University of Cyprus, and outside it. Through funded research projects, participation in academic conferences, and regular publications, we engage with scholarly discourse, enhancing knowledge on modern architecture in Cyprus and the larger region of the Eastern Mediterranean. This is complemented by the more technical and practical activities of the lab, which include collecting, organizing, and digitizing archival material, and the development of tools for digital archiving. The research findings and archival material also feed into the development of courses and pedagogical methods for critically exposing the historical significance and current resonance of modernism in Cyprus and the region.

Resources, Facilities & Equipment

Mesarch’s research on architectural history and historiography is supported by a well-equipped laboratory and an experienced research team conducting archival research, documentation, and theoretical analysis. The lab makes use of standard and advanced equipment for supporting research activities and the sustainable preservation of analogue and digital material. The lab’s engagement with state-of-the-art documentation culminated in the building of the Mesarch Database (MD), a research database used for the cataloguing of a growing collection of digitised material.

Collaborators &
Consultants

University of Cyprus Library
Docomomo Cyprus

Christos Amyrotos (Software Developer)

Past Researchers & Collaborators

Demetris Venizelos Ph.D.

Georgia Daskalaki Ph. D.  

Stavroula Michael Ph.D.

Michalis Psaras

Emily Siantou Ph.D.

Martsella Anthrakopoulou

George Tryfonos Ph.D.

Despina Parpa Ph.D.

Michalis Sioulas Ph.D

George Samaras Ph.D.

Panayiotis Andreou Ph.D.

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