The Living Heritage Atlas celebrates the rich legacy and contemporary practice of local artisanship in Beirut through a comprehensive documentation initiative combining archival research, craftsperson interviews, and community engagement workshops. Created by the MIT Future Heritage Lab led by Professor Azra Akšamija, this project responds to the complex challenges facing Beirut's craft communities in the wake of economic crisis, the devastating 2020 port explosion, and increasing pressures from global market competition. Through careful mapping and documentation of craft workshops across neighborhoods like Gemmayze, Mar Mikhael, and Bourj Hammoud, the Atlas creates a living record of traditional craftsmanship while advocating for greater recognition and economic sustainability for these vulnerable cultural practitioners.
Featured as part of "Tools for Rebuilding Beirut" at the 2023 Venice Biennale, the Living Heritage Atlas transcends conventional documentation to become an active platform for community engagement and urban regeneration. The project has organized immersive craft workshop tours introducing the public to master artisans like Mr. Doniguian (printing press), Peter Khatcherian (pipe making), and Noubar Eskidjian (copper work), alongside innovative "Archival Image Tours" using geo-located QR codes throughout the city that reveal historical photographs and stories of craft heritage. Through mappathons, roundtable discussions, and participatory research, the Atlas not only preserves endangered craft knowledge but reimagines how cultural heritage can become a vital resource for rebuilding Beirut's urban fabric and strengthening community resilience.
Living Heritage Atlas was developed by the Civic Data Design Lab and the Future Heritage Lab at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Living Heritage Atlas is supported by the Dar Group Urban Seed Grant Fund at MIT’s Norman B. Leventhal Center for Advanced Urbanism.
Civic Data Design Lab Team: Sarah Williams (Director), Carmelo Ignaccolo (Lead Researcher & Project Manager), Ashley Louie (Exhibition Lead & Project Manager), Niko McGlashan, Kelly Fang, Enrique Casillas, Gatlen Culp, Huiwen Shi, Sophia Zheng.
Future Heritage Lab Team: Azra Aksamija (Director), Daniella Maamari (Lead Researcher & Project Manager), Sarine Agopian, Ramzi Alieh, Ahmad Beydoun, Racha Doughman, Reem Farhat, Kamila El Khechen, Raafat Majzoub, Fatima Moussa, Moussa Shabandar, Reem Obeid, Rasha Zayour.
Digital archive, events, craft tours
Developed as a collaboration of the Civic Data Design Lab and the Future Heritage Lab at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).