Contemporary Istanbul gathers professionals and art aficionados

ISTANBUL - Hürriyet Daily News

With a wide spread of galleries, including important international ones, the seventh Contemporary Istanbul will become a hub for the arts and support contemporary artists from Turkey, according to officials of the fair.

With over 100 galleries from both Turkey and the international art world, Contemporary Istanbul will showcase a comprehensive range of contemporary artworks in a variety of mediums, including painting, sculpture, video and installation.

Contemporary Istanbul will be held at the Istanbul Convention and Exhibition Center (ICEC) as well as the Istanbul Congress Center between Nov. 22 and 25 with special focus on limited edition works from local and foreign galleries.

With a wide spread of galleries, including important international galleries such as Marlborough Gallery, Haunch of Venison, Opera Gallery, Galerie Michael Schultz, MAM-Mario Mauroner Contemporary Art the event will also host local galleries. Dirimart, Rampa, Galeri Mana and approximately 600 artists will help make the seventh edition of Contemporary Istanbul the largest yet.

“We are excited to present the most comprehensive edition of Contemporary Istanbul to date, while contributing to Istanbul’s cultural and gravitational pull, helping it to become a hub for the arts and support contemporary artists from Turkey,” said the fair’s chairman, Ali Güreli.

As part of the event schedule, the CI Dialogues program will run for the duration of the fair, discussing current topics and welcoming art professions from all over the world. The session “Institutions, Economy and Art” where Simon de Pury, Co-Founder of Philips de Pury and Pierre Levai, Founder of Marlborough Gallery will participate, will be broadcasted live on Bloomberg HT.

This year marks a unique year for Contemporary Istanbul, who in honor of 400 years of diplomatic relations between Turkey and the Netherlands, will host a selection of Dutch galleries that include Grimm Gallery, Galerie AKINCI, Amstel Gallery, Expeditie Zsa-Zsa Eyck, Galerie Gabriel Rolt and Ron Mandos and a number of Dutch artists, gallery owners and collectors that will participate in the fair’s panel discussion program under the theme “Art as a collaborative space.” A selection of video works will be shown as well. The “Art from the Netherlands“ program is organized with the support of the Mondriaan Fund and the Consulate General of the Kingdom of The Netherlands. It will include a series of talks by prominent figures including Ann Deemester (Director, de Appel), Hedwig Fijen (Director, Manifesta), Sabrina Kamstra (Collection AMC, Chairperson, VBCN).

New Horizons of Contemporary Istanbul

The New Horizons section of the fair will explore the contemporary artistic expression produced by surrounding countries in the region. Having previously featured contemporary art from Syria, Iran and the Gulf countries, the seventh edition is focused on Central and Eastern Europe. With Contemporary Istanbul playing host to galleries such as Galerie Vernon, Sarıev Contemporary and Molnar Ani Galeria among many others, along with artists, curators, publications, art critics and collectors from Romania, Ukraine, Bulgaria, Slovenia, Slovakia, Czech Republic, Poland, Lithuania, Estonia, Latvia and Hungary.
The program includes an exhibition of works belonging to the Hungarian collector Gabor Hunya.

This year’s fair will coincide with the launch of Art Istanbul, a city-wide, week-long initiative that sees participating institutions - including museums, foundations and galleries – present a program of exhibition openings, artist talks and panel discussions. Together, the cross-over of the two events will make Istanbul the focus of a broad international art audience.

Art Istanbul is the first week-long initiative dedicated to contemporary art and culture. The event will host a number of cultural activities through a program held in association with major Turkish contemporary art galleries and institutions.

Art Istanbul aims to provide Istanbulites access to new cultural offerings, discussions and education programs by working with the most prestigious institutions, museums, cultural centers and leading galleries between Nov. 19 and 25.

The project will bring together leading commercial and non-profit institutions as well as European Cultural Centers. The launch of Art Istanbul is geared at boosting the city’s presence on the international cultural scene.

“Istanbul, with its ever increasing number of art centers, museums, events such as Istanbul Biennial and Contemporary Istanbul, along with its cultural heritage and economic strength, has managed to attract both local and international recognition. We are delighted to support this week,” Culture and Tourism Minister Ertuğrul Günay said in a statement.

The parallel launch of Art Istanbul and Contemporary Istanbul is aimed to create a key moment in the international arts scene, which will bring together I major art institutions and galleries to gain the attention of art scene.