FLYING CARPET CHILDREN FESTIVAL Returns This October

On Friday, October 1st, 2021, Flying Carpet Children Festival, a multidisciplinary festival for vulnerable children, and an artist residency for artists from around the world will open in Mardin, Turkey, near the Turkish-Syrian border and will close on Sunday, October 10th, 2021.

Founded in 2018, by San Francisco-based Iranian American composer and Artistic Director, Sahba Aminikia in collaboration with Sirkhane (Her Yerde Sanat Dernegi), the festival serves around 5000 vulnerable and refugee children who reside near the Turkish Syrian border each year.

The festival provides world-class performances and multidisciplinary art workshops in the most unexpected places in the world and war zones where music and art are scarce. Since 2018, the festival has held 15 major concerts, 250 workshops for 3000 children and has hosted 75 artists from various countries.

The festival will be featuring 13 artists in 2021 and will be holding 8 major performances throughout the region. The artist lineup includes Khatchadour Khatchadourian (Armenia/United States), Luciano Chessa(Italy/United States), Ameen Mokdad (Iraq), Hunter Prueger (United States), Soheila Bajelan (Iran), Maryam Hemmati (Iran), Özgür Mert (Turkey), Berna Küpeli (Turkey), Céline Bultaeu (France), Reza Goudarzi Karim (Iran), El Chamo (Venezuela), Tommaso Girardi (Italy) and Damla Ozcelik (Turkey).

The festival will be held between October 1st-October 10th, 2021, in the cities of Mardin, Kiziltepe, Nusaybin, Istasyon neighborhood, and villages around the Mardin region. The festival is organized in partnership with Deutsche Welthungerhilfe and BMZ.