ناوەندی ڕۆشنبیری هەردیمركز هردي الثقافيHardi Cultural Center

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نەخشە: سلێمانی · هەرێمی کوردستانی عێراق الخريطة: السليمانية · إقليم كردستان العراق Map: Sulaymaniyah · Kurdistan Region of Iraq

Where We Are

The view from the centre over trees and green fields towards the city of Sulaymaniyah

Nestled in the western hills of Sulaymaniyah, the Hardi Cultural Center overlooks the city and surrounding mountains, offering spectacular views of vineyards, fig, and pomegranate groves.

The centre's grounds from above: stone buildings, gardens and trees, with the hills behind

The Center’s buildings are environmentally constructed & designed, solar-powered, and filled with natural light. Large windows open toward mountain views and garden pathways, creating a homely yet inspiring environment for reflection and creative work.

Snow-covered mountains under a clear blue sky, above a wooded valley, seen from the centre

The site, just a 20-minute drive from the ancient Hazarmerd caves, among the earliest human settlements in the region, connects visitors to both history and horizons.

The round brick arcade in the garden, with the house behind

Who We Are

The garden pond and the stone arcade of the outdoor stage, with a bare hill behind

Founded in 2023, the Hardi Cultural Center (HCC) is a non-profit cultural institution based in Sulaymaniyah, in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. Officially licensed by the Kurdistan Regional Government’s Ministry of Interior, HCC serves as a vibrant hub for creativity, dialogue, and learning.

Hardi Hall: a stone building with tall arched windows and a patterned railing along its roof

Named in memory of the renowned Kurdish poet Ahmed Hardi, the Center embodies the values of reflection, imagination, and artistic freedom that defined his literary legacy.

Dr. Choman Hardi
Aras Fatah

Our Founders

The Hardi Cultural Center (HCC) was co-founded by Dr. Choman Hardi, a feminist writer, poet, and scholar, and Aras Fatah, a writer and socio-political analyst.

The outdoor stage: a curved stone arcade on a paved terrace, with green hills behind

Our Mission

Hardi Cultural Center (HCC) is a creative and cultural hub based in Sulaymaniyah that celebrates Kurdish and Iraqi culture and expression, opening its doors to artists, thinkers, and communities from across Iraq, the wider region, and beyond. HCC exists to foster creativity, dialogue, and learning through inclusive programming that connects tradition with contemporary practice and local experience with global exchange.

The outdoor stage and the garden pond, with the plain and the city in the distance

Our Vision

Hardi Cultural Center (HCC) envisions becoming a leading creative hub in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq and a beacon for cultural expression across the country and beyond. Rooted in the rich heritage of Kurdish and Iraqi art, literature, and resilience, HCC aspires to nurture a vibrant creative ecosystem where tradition and innovation meet.

The garden, the pond and the stone arcade from above

Our values

At the heart of our work is a commitment to care, creativity, and community.

  • Care First We provide a welcoming and safe space for rest, reflection, conversation, and learning.
  • Question the Usual We create opportunities to look at life differently, to ask new questions, to challenge unfair norms, and to imagine futures that are more just, more creative, and more connected.
  • Art with Purpose We support artistic work that brings joy, beauty, and meaning to people affected by conflict and hardship.
Officials and guests stand together in the paved courtyard of Hardi Cultural Center at its launch.

What We Do

The Sewa veranda: two wide stone arches with tables and chairs inside, under a patterned railing

Through residencies, retreats, and learning programs, the Center brings together artists, writers, thinkers, and community members to explore how imagination can heal, inspire, and transform.

Visitors and hosts talk on sofas in a stone-walled lounge with tall arched windows overlooking greenery.

May 2023

Goethe-Institute Team Visits Hardi Cultural Center

On 7 May 2023, Anaïs Boelicke, Director of the Goethe-Institute in Erbil, visited the Hardi Cultural Center with her team. The delegation was given a comprehensive tour of the premises, offering insight into the center’s facilities, programs, and creative environment.

The Hardi Cultural Center's stone building reflected in its garden pond under a clear blue sky.

June 2023

Women’s Rights Under Pressure

On June 10, 2023, the Hardi Cultural Center facilitated a focused discussion with 10 civil society activists and academics to explore urgent challenges facing women’s rights and civic space amid increasing backlash and restrictions.

For me, the Hardi Cultural Center was the perfect place to disconnect and re-engage with the beauty of nature and the surrounding mountains. The mountains, stones, and their stunning colors at dawn and sunset gave me immense strength, helping me to renew myself and reflect deeply.

Black-and-white portrait of visual artist Narmin Mustafa, the Center's inaugural Artist-in-Residence.

September 2023

Artist in Residence

Narmin Mustafa, visual artist and academic

It was a delight to return each evening to such beautiful and comfortable accommodations after spending long hours crouched over books in various archives. … In short, the house truly felt like a ‘home away from home,’ and I’m immensely grateful for my time there.

Portrait of ethnomusicologist Jon Bullock, Scholar-in-Residence at the Hardi Cultural Center in January 2024.

January 2024

Scholar in Residence

Jon Bullock, an ethnomusicologist at the University of Notre Dame

Women's Rights Fellowship participants gathered around tables in the Center's library during a workshop session.

April 2024

Women’s Rights Fellowship I

Between April 14 and 21, 2024, the Hardi Cultural Center, in partnership with the international NGOs Un Ponte Per (UPP) and PAX, organized a six-day training workshop aimed at strengthening participants’ capacity to advocate for equality and social justice.

Fellowship participants and visiting British embassy guests sit in a circle of chairs at the Center, April 2024.

April 2024

UK Deputy Ambassador Visits Hardi Cultural Center

On April 18, 2024, the Hardi Cultural Center had the honor of welcoming Ms. Rosy Cave, the Deputy British Ambassador to Iraq, along with members of her team. The visit provided an opportunity to share insights into our ongoing initiatives and introduce the delegation to one of our workshops in progress.

A trainer addresses media directors in a hotel conference room during the gender equality and PSEA workshop.

November 2024

Enhancing Media Leaders’ Skills in Gender Equality and PSEA

On 27 November 2024, Dr. Choman Hardi, Director of the Hardi Cultural Center (HCC), delivered a training workshop for directors and heads of media agencies as part of the programme Enhancing Media Leaders’ Skills in Gender Equality, PSEA, and Codes of Conduct, implemented by DHRD and JASANA at the Titanic Hotel in Sulaymaniyah.

Opening remarks at Dr. Narmin Mustafa's exhibition at the Dania Trade Center, December 2024.

December 2024

Art as a National Capital

On 16 December 2024, Dr. Choman Hardi co-founder and director of the Hardi Cultural Center, spoke at the opening exhibition of Dr. Narmin Mustafa, one of Kurdistan’s leading women artists.

Visual and Embodied Methodologies (VEM) project logo over a black-and-white upland landscape.

October 2024 – April 2025

Poetry of Witness: Imaging Intersectional Gendered Violence

Between October 2024 and April 2025, Dr. Choman Hardi collaborated with Dr. Rachel Kerr on the research project Visual and Embodied Methodologies (VEM) for Imaging Intersectional Gendered Violence, funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC).

Four panelists seated at the front of a King's College London seminar room during the Ethics of Representation discussion.

November 2022

Ethics of Representation: Engaging with Testimony of Atrocity (Panel Discussion)

On 21 November 2022, Dr. Choman Hardi, Director of the Hardi Cultural Center (HCC), participated in a panel discussion on the Ethics of Representation at King’s College London.

Members of Nwe Organisation sit at tables as a facilitator leads the social justice workshop in Halabja.

January 2025

Social Justice Training

On January 28, 2025, Dr. Choman Hardi led a one-day workshop for Nwe Organisation for Protection of Environment and Women’s Rights, in Halabja.

Women's Writing Network members read and write together in a warm, sunlit room at the Center.

February – August 2025

The Women’s Writing Network

Between February and August 2025, the Hardi Cultural Center organized and led a six-month bi-weekly women’s writing course that provided a supportive and creative environment for emerging female writers to explore poetry, short stories, and biographical writing.

Quote card: Poetry can bring people back from that black hole, restoring their individuality, attributed to Choman Hardi.

May 2025

Poetry Comes to Our Rescue: A Conversation between Choman Hardi and Rachel Kerr

In an Arts Cabinet editorial in May 2025, Choman Hardi and Rachel Kerr discussed how poetry can act as a tool for witnessing and reimagining gendered violence in contexts of war and genocide.

Women from across Iraq share stories around tables in the Center's library during the storytelling retreat.

May 2025

Storytelling Across the Divide

Between May 18 and 22, 2025, the Hardi Cultural Center in partnership with the Goethe Institute organized a 5-day storytelling and dialogue retreat at the Center. The workshop brought together women from across Iraq to foster healing, reflection, and solidarity through storytelling and creative writing.

Fellowship participants sit on a red carpet, discussing paper cards laid out during an interactive exercise.

June 2025

Women’s Rights Fellowship II

Between June 20 and 27, 2025, the Hardi Cultural Center, in partnership with the international NGOs Un Ponte Per (UPP) and PAX, organized a week-long residential program that brought together young people from across Iraq to strengthen their capacity for advocacy and leadership.

The workshop facilitator speaks beside a flipchart of handwritten notes at the People's Development Organization's Women's Academy.

June 2025

Feminist Discourse, Key Concepts

Between 10 and 22 June 2025, the Director of the Hardi Cultural Center, Dr. Choman Hardi, facilitated a six-day workshop for the Women’s Academy of the People’s Development Organization.

Poster for 'A Social Reading of Women's Issues', an online course with the Vejin Institute, in Kurdish.

August 2025

A Social Reading of Women’s Issues

In August 2025, the Director of the Hardi Cultural Center facilitated a five-session online course (two hours per session) in partnership with the Vejin Institute, focusing on concepts, theories, and strategies to promote equality and social justice.

A woman stands beside a purple panel showing the poem 'On Survival' at the Veminism Symposium.

September 2025

Veminism Symposium at King’s College London

On 13 September 2025, Dr. Choman Hardi, Director of the Hardi Cultural Center (HCC), participated in the Veminism Symposium at King’s College London, contributing to the panel “Imaging Pain” alongside Professor Rachel Kerr and Dr. Tiffany Fairey.

Choman Hardi and Fatma Savcı in conversation on stage at the Kurdish Studies Forum, AUIS.

Photo: AUIS

September 2025

Craft Conversation

On 26 September 2025, during the inaugural Kurdish Studies Forum organised by the Kashkul Center at the American University of Iraq, Sulaimani, Choman Hardi was in conversation with Fatma Savcı, a Kurdish poet who began writing while imprisoned for her political activism in Turkey.

Being able to spend ten uninterrupted days here, especially in the countryside, felt like a rare gift.

Portrait of writer Alisha C. Robinson, HCC's writer in residence in December 2025.

December 2025

Writer in Residence

Alisha C. Robinson

Philosophy students gather around a table before bookshelves and a Kurdish flag at Hardi Cultural Center.

January 2026

Hardi Cultural Center Hosts Philosophy Students

On January 8, 2026, a group of philosophy students led by Dr. Nawzad Jemal visited the Hardi Cultural Center for an engaging day of exploration and dialogue.

Audience at the 'Women and the Social Environment' seminar in Kirkuk's Shaqami Jumhuri Salon.

May 2026

Women and the Social Environment

On 18 May 2026, Dr. Choman Hardi, Director of the Hardi Cultural Center (HCC), delivered a seminar titled “Women and the Social Environment” at the Shaqami Jumhuri Salon in Kirkuk.

Poet Hiwa Kader reads from a book, accompanied by piano and saxophone, at Hardi Cultural Center.

May 2026

Evening of Poetry and Music: Hiwa Kader with Arsalan Bahrami & Mihran

On 23 May 2026, the Hardi Cultural Center hosted a memorable evening of poetry and music celebrating the work of acclaimed writer and poet Hiwa Kader. The event, titled What Rescues the World is Beauty, took its name from one of Kader's poems and reflected his enduring belief in the power of beauty, love, and artistic expression in difficult times.

Guests share dinner at outdoor terrace tables at Hardi Cultural Center, with hills in the background.

June 2026

Food for the Body and the Spirit: A Delightful Dinner with Music

On 11 June 2026, the Hardi Cultural Center, in partnership with Venos Food, welcomed around 140 guests for a special evening celebrating food, music, and community. Offered free of charge, the event brought together people from diverse backgrounds for a warm and memorable gathering that reflected HCC’s commitment to making culture accessible and inclusive.

Kajal Ahmad reads her poems, accompanied by Jiyar Goran Omar on the oud, at Hardi Cultural Center.

June 2026

Evening of Poetry and Music: Kajal Ahmad with Jiyar Goran & Arsalan Bahrami

On 13 June 2026, the Hardi Cultural Center hosted an evening of poetry and music celebrating the work of acclaimed Kurdish poet Kajal Ahmad. The event, titled Changing the World with Love, took its name from one of Ahmad’s poems and reflected the themes of love, hope, and transformation that run through her writing.

Dilawar Qaradakhi reads his poems as Delawaz Bahrami plays the piano at Hardi Cultural Center.

July 2026

Evening of Poetry and Music: Dilawar Qaradakhi with Delawaz Bahrami

On the evening of 8 July 2026, the Hardi Cultural Center hosted a special evening of poetry and music celebrating the work of renowned Kurdish poet Dilawar Qaradakhi. The event, titled The World is Brutally Beautiful, took its name from one of Qaradakhi’s poems and reflected the striking imagery and emotional depth that characterize his writing.

A group from the Halabja Organizations Solidarity Platform gathers by the stone arches in HCC's garden.

July 2026

Halabja Organizations Solidarity Platform Visits HCC

On 9 July 2026, we were delighted to welcome members of the Halabja Organizations Solidarity Platform to the Hardi Cultural Center.

Pianist Delawaz Bahrami, 16, sits with her father, musician Arsalan Bahrami, during her HCC residency.

June – July 2026

Musician in Residence: Delawaz Bahrami

Between 22 June and 17 July 2026, the Hardi Cultural Center welcomed 16-year-old pianist Delawaz Bahrami as a musician-in-residence, accompanied by her father, musician and singer Arsalan Bahrami. Visiting from Saqqez in Kurdistan, Iran, Delawaz has been playing the piano since the age of 10.

The first time I visited the Hardi Cultural Center, I was struck by the beauty of its architecture, set in the natural landscape and looking out over the whole city of Sulaymaniyah. … My stay has ended, but this is a place that will stay close to my heart and in my memory, and one I will return to often.

May–August 2026

Scholar in Residence: Dr. Hemin Latif

Dr. Hemin Latif

Participants of the Reporting Fairly workshop work around a table in a library room.

September 2026

Reporting Fairly Residential Workshop

From 1–5 September 2026, the Hardi Cultural Center, in partnership with the Goethe-Institut, facilitated the five-day residential workshop “Reporting Fairly: Social Justice, Women’s Rights and Ethical Representation” in Sulaimaniyah.

Empty chairs waiting under a warmly lit stone arch on the Sewa veranda

How can you contribute?

We actively seek partners who share our belief in the power of creativity. To donate, to work with us, or to support our work in another way, please reach out. Every contribution helps keep our doors open.

The stone hall from outside: young cypress trees along its wall, the paved path and the hill behindAn old brass tap on the stone wall

How can you connect with us?

Sulaymaniyah · Kurdistan Region of Iraq

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The House of Ahlam, the residents’ house: a stone ground floor and a red upper floor, among trees

Become a Resident

The House of Ahlam seen along a paved stone path lined with trees

What is the residency?

Through short- and long-term residencies, Hardi Cultural Center offers an inspiring and distraction-free space to national and international writers, musicians, artists, sculptors, actors, and directors to take time off, recharge, and engage in their craft.

A paved path beside a row of stone arches leads to the House of Ahlam under a cloudy sky

Where you stay

You stay in the House of Ahlam, our artist-in-residence house, built by master builders from Rojhelat (Kurdistan–Iran) and named after the feminist writer Ahlam Mansour.

The library: a wall of bookshelves, with chairs set out in rows on a red carpet

For scholars too

Through its scholar-in-residence program, the Hardi Cultural Center offers researchers, academics, and thinkers an inspiring environment away from the distractions of daily life, encouraging interdisciplinary dialogue and connections between scholarship, creativity, and the wider community.

The shaded veranda: stone walls, a stone pillar, tables and chairs, and arches opening onto the garden

What we offer

It provides accommodation, office space, artist’s studio, recording studio, and high-speed internet as well as optional engagements with the larger community, hiking opportunities, and guided historical tours. Guests enjoy fresh, locally sourced meals prepared from the Center’s own garden, reinforcing HCC’s commitment to sustainability and well-being.

For me, the Hardi Cultural Center was the perfect place to disconnect and re-engage with the beauty of nature and the surrounding mountains. The mountains, stones, and their stunning colors at dawn and sunset gave me immense strength, helping me to renew myself and reflect deeply.

Black-and-white portrait of visual artist Narmin Mustafa, the Center's inaugural Artist-in-Residence.

September 2023

Artist in Residence

Narmin Mustafa, visual artist and academic

It was a delight to return each evening to such beautiful and comfortable accommodations after spending long hours crouched over books in various archives. … In short, the house truly felt like a ‘home away from home,’ and I’m immensely grateful for my time there.

Portrait of ethnomusicologist Jon Bullock, Scholar-in-Residence at the Hardi Cultural Center in January 2024.

January 2024

Scholar in Residence

Jon Bullock, an ethnomusicologist at the University of Notre Dame

Being able to spend ten uninterrupted days here, especially in the countryside, felt like a rare gift.

Portrait of writer Alisha C. Robinson, HCC's writer in residence in December 2025.

December 2025

Writer in Residence

Alisha C. Robinson

The first time I visited the Hardi Cultural Center, I was struck by the beauty of its architecture, set in the natural landscape and looking out over the whole city of Sulaymaniyah. … My stay has ended, but this is a place that will stay close to my heart and in my memory, and one I will return to often.

May–August 2026

Scholar in Residence: Dr. Hemin Latif

Dr. Hemin Latif

The stone hall from outside: young cypress trees along its wall, the paved path and the hill behind

How to apply

Write to us or call us, in any language. Tell us who you are and what you would like to create during your stay. Reach out for full information, including fees, dates and logistics.

Application requirements

Subject line
Residency application – your name, your field
  1. Your name, where you are based, and how to reach you
  2. Your field: writing, music, visual art, film, theatre, research…
  3. A short biography or CV (one page)
  4. Examples of your work: a few images, recordings or pages, or a link to your website or portfolio
  5. What you would like to work on during your residency (half a page)
  6. Why the Hardi Cultural Center, in a few sentences
  7. Your preferred dates and length of stay
  8. Whether you would like to come alone or with others, and anything that helps us welcome you, such as access or dietary needs

We look forward to hearing from you.

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