Istanbul Biennial announces contributors

By Handan Kazanci

ISTANBUL (AA) - Istanbul’s highly-anticipated two-month art attraction, the 17th Istanbul Biennial, announced the list of contributors for this year’s event on Thursday.

Organized by the Istanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts (IKSV) and supported by 2007-2026 Biennial Sponsor Koc Holding, the event will be held from Sept. 17 - Nov. 20.

The event “is the result of more than two years of conversations on projects situated in different parts of the globe,” IKSV said in a statement. It is curated by Ute Meta Bauer, Amar Kanwar and David Teh.

“The 17th Istanbul Biennial asserts not just the power of art to bring diverse communities together, it celebrates the city itself as fertile ground for co-creation and collaboration,” said the director of the Istanbul Biennial, Bige Orer.

“We once again affirm the need to come together, in hospitable spaces and with initiatives that defend and revitalise our public cultures, engaging over the long-term with our communities across the city and beyond,” Orer added.

Among contributors are video and performance artist from Afghanistan, Lida Abdul; Indonesian artist Arahmaian; Istanbul-based Hrant Dink Foundation and 23.5 Hrant Dink Site of Memory; Australian-born artist of South African and Mauritian descent,
Newell Harry; multidisciplinary artist Taloi Havini; Beirut-born visual artist Lamia Joreige; Turkish contemporary artist Gulsun Karamustafa; artist, educationalist and curator Mariah Lookman; Brazilian visual artist Alice Miceli and Thai artist Araya Rasdjarmrearnsook.

Apart from its usual locations such as Pera Museum, a former Greek high school for girls from the late 19th century -- Central Greek High School for Girls, the event will introduce new venues including a 130-year-old power plant recently converted into a museum Muze Gazhane; an art space founded by Syrian artists, arthereistanbul, and the atelier of a calligrapher and book-binding artist Barin Han.