This study examines the sustainability and transformative potential of traditional handicrafts on the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage list within contemporary art disciplines, focusing on the case of Maraş Abası. Utilizing an artist-researcher practice and practice-based research methodology, the research analyzes how the structural and semantic codes of the aba can be reconstructed through an installation. In this process, the ontological essence of the aba, its “protective” function and the modular principle defined in the literature as the “partitioned whole,” is reinterpreted through the hybrid use of materials like leather and metal. Based on Charles Sanders Peirce’s semiotic triad (icon, index, symbol), the dense metal ring system is constructed as a “relational network” representing social bonds, while the shadow reflected in the space is interpreted as a phenomenological layer and a spiritual metaphor for “prayer.” Findings reveal that the structural genetics of Maraş Abası are in methodological harmony with contemporary installation practices, suggesting that preserving tradition is possible through “semantic metamorphosis” rather than “formal repetition.” Consequently, the study presents an original interdisciplinary model for the reproduction of traditional heritage through contemporary art practices.

Maraş Aba, Contemporary Art, Relational Aesthetics, Intangible Cultural Heritage, Artist-Researcher, Phenomenology