Coffee meets three cities in Istanbul exhibition

ISTANBUL

The exhibition ‘Three Cities, One Coffee’ at Milli Reasürans Art Gallery explores the culture of coffee with photographs taken by Manuel Çıtak.

Istanbul’s Mili Reasürans Art Gallery’s exhibition titled “Three Cities, One Coffee: Cairo, Istanbul, Vienna” explores the culture of coffee with photographs by Manuel Çıtak.
 
The people of countless nations across the world are connected by the wonderful, enduring tradition of drinking coffee. For millions, this universal dark liquid is an everyday treat, a comfort and a stimulant, a tonic to slow the frantic pace of modern life for a few precious moments. Curated by Suna Altan, the exhibition focuses on the coffee-drinking customs of three of the world’s greatest cities, Istanbul, Cairo and Vienna. Combining modern photography with choice excerpts from a wealth of coffee history and literature, it explores the story of the global passion for coffee.

Who discovered it, who brewed it for the first time and who popularized it in different parts of the world? Is it true that an Ethiopian goat herder, a Yemeni dervish and a Ukrainian nobleman were all responsible for bringing coffee into our lives? These are just a few of the topics that the exhibition addresses as it reveals the colorful and surprising story of one of the world’s favorite beverages.

Featuring spectacular photography, an unusual exhibition design, a wealth of literary tidbits from coffee history as well as videos and Saturday afternoon sessions of “Coffee Chats,” the exhibition brings together the cities of Cairo, Istanbul and Vienna in a unique way to celebrate the joys of coffee, also known as kahwa, kahve and kaffee.

“Three Cities, One Coffee: Cairo, Istanbul Vienna” can be visited through Feb. 27.