Contested Leisurescapes

Combining archival and field research with an interdisciplinary critical approach which incorporates methodological tools from architectural and cultural history, as well as social scientific perspectives on tourism, political conflict, development and sustainability, this project will examine the architecture of tourism and leisure-scapes in Cyprus, focusing on the period 1960-74, which constitutes the first phase of tourism boom in Cyprus. This research will connect the architecture of hotels and leisure-scapes with larger politics on the Island, as they relate to the intercommunal conflict; the antagonisms of national modernization; and the politics of environmental management. Along with filling a lacuna in the global history of modern architecture, the project makes significant contributions to current advances in tourism studies, and environment-development studies; it furthermore promises to add nuance and sophistication to current trends in policy-making on tourism.