Countdown starts for Mardin Biennial

MARDIN - Anatolia News Agency

The biennial is organized in various historical and cultural venues in Mardin.

The eastern province of Mardin is preparing for the second International Mardin Biennial, to be held this year from Sept. 21 to Oct. 21. The theme of the event will be “Double Take.” The first edition was held in June 2010.

Supported by the Southeastern Anatolian Project (GAP) Administration, the Mardin Governor’s Office and the Prime Ministry’s Promotional Fund, the Mardin Biennial is directed by Döne Otyam with assistance from Ayşegül Sönmez. This year the curators of the biennial are Paolo Colombo, who was the curator of the sixth Istanbul Biennial, and Lora Sarıaslan.

The city of Mardin faces the past and the present, according to curators Colombo and Sarıaslan. Their conceptual framework of the biennial plans to bring contemporary art together with the colorful stories and soul of the city, by blending today’s visual culture with the texture of Mardin, as well as focusing on individual stories.

“While taking its clues from the richness of the city’s cultural, architectural and historical layers, the biennial recreates itself and advises us to reshape the city,” according to the curators.

The biennial will host 30 artists including Fikret Atay, Sami Baydar, Edy Ferguson, Mona Hatoum, Hrair Sarkissian, Murat Şahinler, Shahzia Sikander and Pae White. The artists will use various interesting venues in the city, including historical structures, barber shops, coffee houses and open air cinemas as exhibition venues. The exhibitions are located within walking distance of each other.

Mardin’s signature pigeons will be the mascots of the biennial, because pigeons have unique talents, such as tumbling in the air, and the biennial also showcases the unique, Colombo said.