September 14–December 1, 2022
Zilberman Gallery is pleased to present Ivy, a group exhibition that spans three venues of the gallery in Istanbul. Curated by Başak Şenova, the exhibition features works by Heba Y. Amin, Omar Barquet, Burçak Bingöl, Yane Calovski, Ramesch Daha, Memed Erdener, Didem Erk, Fatoş İrwen, Zeynep Kayan, Azade Köker, Bronwyn Lace, Marcus Neustetter, Cristiana de Marchi, Larry Muñoz, Maarit Mustonen, Egle Oddo, Erkan Özgen, Bochra Taboubi, Cengiz Tekin, Simon Wachsmuth and Verena Miedl-Faißt/Nirual Kenabru.
The passage on “ivy” from a recently discovered manuscript by Alexs O. van Tlön*, which is in the ownership of the Institut für außergewöhnliches Archivwissen Wien in Vienna, served as the conceptual foundation for the show. The paragraph gives specific details about how the Arabic term for ivy, “asheka,” has been changed into the Turkish word “aşk,” which means love—even extreme and excessive love. Van Tlön continues with some lines about how connections and strong ties could have vital importance for survival and how a “plant” can be a resilient symbol for life. The reasoning is quite logical and even poetic: “The ivy absorbs the water of the tree it surrounds, withers it, weakens it, and sometimes dries it. The passage then adds additional views on “ruins” to further develop this topic. As a result, ruins, one of the most potent symbols of plenty, help to stabilize the idea of impermanence, and ivy is the only thing that connects life to what has been left behind.
The show explores the mysterious and paradoxical meanings of “ivy,” which branch out into various stories, points of view, creatures, and realities that exist and possess it simultaneously. Through shared geographical, territorial, and mental temporalities throughout the three venues, Zilberman Istanbul, Zilberman-Project Space, and Zilberman Selected, the works connect these branches. The venues responsively cross-reference one another across the city using these links.
*Our knowledge with academic and artist Alexs O. Van Tlön’s life and work can be traced back to a number of fragments that we have been fortunate enough to find in a variety of archives, museums, and repositories dispersed in an apparently random pattern across the world.
Ivy in print: In the span of the exhibition, a publication will accompany the exhibition.
Artists: Heba Y. Amin, Omar Barquet, Burçak Bingöl, Yane Calovski, RMemed Erdener, Didem Erk, Fatoş İrwen, Zeynep Kayan, Azade Köker, Erkan Özgen, Cengiz Tekin, and Simon Wachsmuth are represented by the Zilberman Gallery. Ramesch Daha, Bronwyn Lace, Marcus Neustetter, Larry Muñoz, Maarit Mustonen, Egle Oddo, Bochra Taboubi, and Verena Miedl-Faißt/Nirual Kenabru are invited by the gallery.
Maarit Mustonen is generously supported by Frame Contemporary Art Finland. Bochra Taboubi, and Verena Miedl-Faißt/Nirual Kenabru and Cristiana de Marchi are supported by the Octopus Programme, Vienna.
Başak Şenova is an independent curator and a Visiting Professor at the University of Applied Arts Vienna, running a research-based educational platform “the Octopus Programme” and co-leading (with David Chisholm) the Arts-based Research (PEEK) project Atlas, awarded by FWF Austrian Science Fund (2022–26).
*Ivy is held within the scope of parallel programs of the 17th Istanbul Biennial.
ZIilberman-Project Space
İstiklal Cad. No.163 Mısır Apartmanı K.2 D.5 Beyoğlu
Zilberman Selected
İstiklal Mah. Piyalepaşa Bulvarı No: 32C
Istanbul, Turkey
Zilberman Istanbul
Istiklal Cad. Misir Apt. No:163 K:3 D:10 Beyoglu
34433 Istanbul
Turkey
www.zilbermangallery.com
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