On the occasion of its 150th anniversary, School Square Galatasaray offered a fresh perspective through contemporary art, to this deep-rooted school, which has hosted cultural and artistic events along with being an educational institution encouraging and supporting its students’ artistic tendencies and creativity throughout its history. The exhibition takes on the name of “school” (mektep) in reference to the name of the institution still remembered as and called “the school” by its graduates even today, to the history of the building and its character as a place of education. This word play thus both references the Galatasaray Square with which the school is inextricably and necessarily intermeshed and envisages the structure of the Galatasaray High School with its garden and surrounding walls as an intellectual square where contemporary artists shall meet and debate. The site and context-specific works in the exhibition by the artists Elvan Alpay, biriken (Melis Tezkan, Okan Urun), Hera Büyüktaşçıyan, Antonio Cosentino, Burak Delier, Hasan Deniz, Cemal Emden, Barış Göktürk, Ali Kazma and Vahit Tuna related to the location, function, history and space of Galatasaray High School by means of painting, sculpture, installation, photography, video, sound and performance. The exhibition catalogue presents three articles, which provides different perspectives on culture of Galatasaray. The curator of the exhibition Çelenk Bafra’s essay on the relationship between the school and the square contextualizes the works in the exhibition. Besim F. Dellaloğlu presents his thoughts about what it means to experience Galatasaray High School. Murat Alat uses his personal experience to contemplate on the idea of school and education in a more general sense.
Publication Date: 2018
Number of Pages: 136
ISBN: 978-605-4642-80-9
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