September, the golden season of art
ISTANBUL
It seems as if September in Istanbul is the season of art: The city’s calendar is packed with a bounty of art-related, including the debut of a new museum, Arter; the Istanbul Biennial and dozens of other art exhibitions and events.
One of the most prestigious international art events in the world, the 16th Istanbul Biennial, between Sept. 14 and Nov. 10 features 56 artists from 25 countries. Curated by French academic and writer Nicolas Bourriaud, the artistic program offers talks, film screenings, concerts and culinary-related activities centered around the theme, “Seventh Continent.”
Vehbi Koç Foundation’s long-awaited contemporary art museum, Arter, will reopen its doors in its new location on Sept. 13 with seven exhibitions.
The first four months of the museum’s program features Aydın Esen, Portrait and a Dream, Elif Çağlar Quartet, Can Çakmur, In Hoodies, Emin Fındıkoğlu Quartet, Tolgahan Çoğulu and Sinan Ayyıldız Duo, along with Meggy Rustamova, Noé Soulier, Gizem Karakaş and Etem Şahin, Kate McIntosh.
The museum also offers a film program, starting Oct. 22 with “Jonas Mekas Retrospective.” The program will continue with directors and artists such as Agnes Varda, Chantal Ackerman, Alain Resnais, Chris Marker, Laurie Anderson and Apichatpong Weerasethakul.
Arter, where admission is free of charge through Jan. 2, 2020, is on its way to becoming a central attraction in this bustling megacity and tourist hub.
Pera Museum, a host of the 16th Istanbul Biennial on three floors, will exhibit a video installation titled “For All the Time, for All the Sad Stones.” Inspired by its “Anatolian Weights and Measures Collection,” the installation by Nicola Lorini starts with recent events, in particular the calculation of the hypothetical mass of the internet and the loss of weight of the model of the kilogram and its consequential redefinition and traces a non-linear voyage through the collection. It is on display through Nov. 24.
Meanwhile, the third edition of Artweeks@Akaretler, which opened at Akaretler Sıraevler on Sept. 3 presenting works by Turkish and foreign artists, will continue through Sept. 22. Fourteen galleries are participating in the event.
One of the first representatives of the photo realism movement in Turkey, Nur Koçak’s new exhibition, titled “Your Blissful Souvenirs” opened at Salt Galata and Salt Beyoğlu and gathers her works from different eras. Her large-scale drawings of perfume bottles, “Ebrusan Vitrini” and the Family Album series is on exhibit until Dec. 9.
In the new season, Borusan Contemporary will present an exhibition by Bill Viola, one of the pioneers of video art. For the artist’s first exhibition in Istanbul, titled “They Are Uttered and Left Unfinished All the Loves in the World II.” Boat tours from Karaköy to Borusan Contemporary are available at no cost on Sept. 14 and 15. The exhibition will be open through Sept. 13, 2020.
On the anniversary of its 75th year, Yapı Kredi Culture and Arts will open Halil Altındere’s exhibition “Abracadabra” on Sept. 11. The exhibition will display the artist’s more than 20 works including hyper-realistic sculptures such as “Telephone Call” and “Magic Touch” as well as bronze works and installations.