Anna Laudel Contemporary opens in Istanbul

ISTANBUL

The Anna Laudel Contemporary gallery opened its doors for the first time on Bankalar Street in Istanbul’s Karaköy neighborhood, launching with an inaugural group show ‘When Did We Stop Playing?’ 

The new, five-story gallery space also hosts an Artist in Residency program, an Art Shop and a jewelry concession.

Anna Laudel Contemporary, formerly ART350 gallery, was founded in 2012 by the German textile magnate Anna Laudel with the aim of supporting the work of Turkish and international artists by providing a prominent contemporary exhibition platform and through developing a greater understanding of and closer appreciation for contemporary art within the Turkish region.

The gallery’s new identity and re-location to the old finance district of the late Ottoman Empire in Karaköy, within a historic building boasting a vast exhibition space spanning five floors, marks a new chapter for Anna Laudel Contemporary. 

“We see the gallery as a bridge through which to stay connected with the international art world, to support art production and to show the outcome by displaying great art. I wanted the gallery’s artists to exhibit in a larger space and organize events where people could meet, exchange ideas, and stay in touch with the international art scene. That is also why we changed our name to Anna Laudel Contemporary because a new space and a new name will create a new identity that presents our aim as a gallery, it is like a sign of a new concept and a bigger project,” said Laudel in a statement. 

As well as hosting a dynamic exhibitions program, gallery director Ferhat Yeter will develop the space into a center for public art discussions, workshops and interdisciplinary readings. The gallery will also represent Turkish artists at an international level by showcasing their latest projects at leading international art fairs. 
The gallery will launch a new Artist Residency Program, nurturing the talent of local, regional and international artists. 

The Art Shop in the gallery, offering democratically priced prints, photographs and art journals, aims at supporting a new generation of art buyers and emerging collectors. Visitors will also be able to explore the latest collections of luxury Danish jewelry brand Monies through the first commercial outlet of the design label within Turkey.


‘When Did We Stop Playing?’

Curated by Isabel Bernheimer, the founder of Bernheimer Contemporary, the group show “When Did We Stop Playing?” marks the first exhibition at Anna Laudel Contemporary’s new gallery space. 

The multi-artist show features the work of Peter Alasztics, Blue and Joy, Daniele Sigalot, Alexander Deubl, Swaantje Güntzel, Felix Höfner, Sebastian Klug, Jan Kuck, Milana Schoeller, Ludovic Thiriez and Johannes Vetter. 

Through framing the question “When did we stop playing?” the exhibition aims to explore the great, universal game of life in our shared, contemporary existence.

“Sometimes we make the rules of this game, but most of the time we are being ruled by it. As we deem our lives to be more important and more serious, we begin to a sense of playfulness. Yet a life without joy is not worth living. That is why I felt it was time to ask ourselves, in all seriousness, when did we stop playing?” Bernheimer said about the show.

The exhibition, which opens on Dec. 16, will continue through Feb. 12, 2017.