Dirimart opens new art space in Dolapdere

ISTANBUL

New exhibition spaces, galleries and museums continue to emerge in Istanbul’s contemporary art scene, and this month Dirimart, one of the leading galleries in Turkish art, opened a second gallery in Istanbul’s Dolapdere area. 

Designed by architect Markus Dochantschi, founder of Studio MDA, New York, the new space spreads over 1,000 square meters, including the offices and an outdoor sculpture garden.

“Surface and Beyond,” the inaugural group exhibition in the new space, presents well-known international and Turkish contemporary artists. 

All artworks, paintings, sculptures, or films, invite the viewer on a visual journey beyond the surface. 

Whereas the concept of the “exposed surface” is investigated from various perspectives, the works feature political, social, and religious subtexts beneath the surface.

The exhibition, curated by Heinz Peter Schwerfel, displays works by Franz Ackermann, Haluk Akakçe, Autoban, Ayşe Erkmen, Bernard Filiz, Isaac Julien, Sarah Morris, Shirin Neshat, Eva Rothschild, Tomas Saraceno and Ebru Uygun. It will be on view through July 30 at Dirimart Dolapdere.

In his column in daily Hürriyet on May 27, Hürriyet Publishing Consultant and well-known art critic Doğan Hızlan said galleries should have other aspects besides exhibitions and that the new space in Dolapdere provided it. 
“In the entrance of the gallery, which covers an area of 1,000 square meters, you can find catalogues and art books. You can take them. The gallery opens up onto a garden and you can drink your tea or coffee there. It’s not just for visitors – there is also a small garden for gallery workers.”

He said the gallery was the first of its kind at present but noted that the Koç Contemporary Art Museum would also open in the same region. 

“When all the galleries are finished, I am sure that the region will become a real art center and the number of visitors will increase,” Hızlan said. 

Established by Hazer Özil in 2002, Dirimart has become a leading contemporary art gallery in Turkey and is working with world-known Turkish artists, as well as international ones such as Thomas Bayrle, Hermann Nitsch, Shirin Neshat, Franz Ackermann, Sarah Morris and Ghada Amer.