Jeudi 29 Octobre 2015 11:58:06 par Myriam Boudjemia dans Expositions

In the framework of the Europalia.Turkey international arts festival, the MAS|Museum aan de Stroom will host the major exhibition Istanbul-Antwerp. Port City Talks. Ten artists will focus on the decisive role water played in Istanbul’s development into the city it is today, highlighting a number of similarities with Antwerp. The videos, films and installations of contemporary Turkish artists, combined with a selection of unique treasures that illustrate the maritime past of the two cities, will take visitors on a journey to Istanbul. The experience will be enhanced by the captivating exhibition design by the prominent Turkish architect, Murat Tabanlioğlu. The MAS | Museum aan de Stroom is collecting postcards from Istanbul for the exhibition.

Civilisations meet where water meets the land, in places where people trade goods, gain access to new and different worlds, exchange ideas and absorb differences. In Istanbul and Antwerp, this human interaction plays an important role in the development of the city and its surrounding region, along with the port infrastructure and new materials such as steel and concrete. Istanbul literally sits at the crossroads of two continents, Asia and Europe. For centuries, its port has served as a gateway to the Far East. Antwerp, meanwhile, developed from a port city by a river into a world-class port, becoming a gateway to the rest of the world. These two cities for centuries have been known as active trading cities, with great political significance.

Istanbul-Antwerp. Port City Talks.

The exhibition examines the evolution of Istanbul as a city by the water from an Antwerp perspective, encouraging visitors to walk past the traces of Istanbul, to discover artworks and artefacts from various centuries and to use the multimedia installations. Moreover, the exhibition invites the public to get to know the Bosporus and its inlet, the Golden Horn, and the regions behind it better. At the same time, the exhibition also explores the relationship between Istanbul and Antwerp, shedding new light on the towers in these two cities, taking a closer look at the docks, cranes and shipyards in both ports as well as guiding visitors along the bridges across the Bosporus and through the tunnels under the River Scheldt.

In the first section of the exhibition, visitors will be able to see a selection of archaeological objects from Yenikapı, Istanbul’s oldest harbour, which dates from the fourth century and was abandoned in the eleventh century when river silt filled it in. This is the first time that these will be exhibited in Belgium. In the next sections, visitors can find out more about the way people live and travel in these two cities. The exhibition pays attention to the many tunnels and bridges in both cities. Istanbul, after all, is known for its bridges while Antwerp is more renowned for its tunnels, shipyards and docks. The items on display have been loaned from Turkish and Belgian museums and private collections. A group of digital artists will also create new works for the exhibition, in the undoubtedly unusual and promising exhibition design by curator Murat Tabanlıoğlu.

In the framework of Istanbul-Antwerp, a Turkish artist has been invited for a residency in the framework of the AIR Antwerp international residency project. During his stay, the artist will explore the exhibition’s theme, exhibiting the outcome of his work in the MAS.

Murat Tabanlıoğlu
Murat Tabanlıoğlu studied architecture at the Vienna Technical University. In 1990, he founded “Tabanlioglu Architects” in Istanbul, together with Dr. Hayati Tabanlıoğlu. In addition to his studio programme at Bilgi University, he also lectures at various other universities and on international platforms. He regularly serves as a jury member for academic programmes and competitions. Tabanlıoğlu is a privileged member of the “Royal Institute of British Architects” and has won several international awards. He was involved in several international events and exhibitions. In 2014, he curated “Places of Memory”, the Turkish pavilion at the biennial International Architecture Exhibition in Venice.

Greetings from Istanbul
The MAS | Museum aan de Stroom is collecting postcards from and views from Istanbul for its new exhibition. Are you visiting Istanbul in the next few months? Then don’t hesitate to send the MAS a postcard. We will use it in our new exhibition Istanbul-Antwerp. Port City Talks. For every card we receive that is postmarked Istanbul we will give you a free ticket for one to the exhibition.