Clean Hands - Temiz Eller @Apartman Projesi, Eylul 2006

Alti Aylik for the “all about lies” at Apartman Projesi, September 2006


Alti Aylik lost its physical gallery space a couple of months ago, so we are now trying to transform the project into a more flexible structure that uses any kind of space except a settled one.

For the exhibition “all about lies” at Apartman Projesi we are creating our own space that does not interfere with the actual gallery space and instead exists as a series of multiples that easily spread out into the public arena.

Inspired by the specific location of Apartman Projesi in one of the gastronomical centers of Istanbul we have chosen to work with the single packed refreshment towels as a medium to present Alti Aylik. These scented towels are very common in Turkey, often given out after meals to keep one’s hands fresh and clean. For “all about lies” the wrapping of these towels becomes the space for the artwork and in this way it communicates easily with everyone that uses them.

The first motif to be applied is the “clean hands/temiz eller” gesture, presented as a naive drawing of a hand with the fingers crossed behind the back, it is a sign used to indicate that the finger-crosser does not mean what he is saying, or is being compelled to act through coercion. (A typical childhood trick is to surreptitiously cross one's fingers behind one's back while making a promise, a token that supposedly shields the finger-crosser from the obligation of upholding the terms of his oath.) With this gesture the perpetrator is trying to keep his/her hands clean, albeit purposefully going along with a lie. And lying is a common thing: According to scientific research we all lie approximately 200-300 times a day.
The words “clean hands/temiz eller” also refers to the international operation against corruption that started in Italy in 1992 under the motto “mani pulite” and that was later initiated in Turkey as “temiz eller” to fight mafia structures in the system.

"Miss Universe Contestants 2006" / Sophie Nys, 2006

ZULEYKA RIVERA
MISS UNIVERSE® 2006

On July 23rd, 2006, the life of 18 year old Zuleyka Rivera changed forever as she was crowned Miss Universe 2006 live from the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, California.

Hailing from Salinas, Puerto Rico, a small coastal town off the Caribbean Sea, Zuleyka is the eldest of three children. Extremely close with her two younger brothers, she has always considered family to be her top priority. “My parents always provided both my brothers and me with all the necessities in life, but taught us that that what matters most is being a part of a united, loving family where respect and honesty prevail.”

An aspiring actress, Zuleyka has already worked on several commercials and television programs, as well as tested her skills as an emcee. “I would love to be a crossover actress and work in both Latino and American cinema.” The 5’ 9” Latina hopes to distinguish herself with determination, courage and self-confidence; three traits she feels have defined her as a young woman.

When she is not representing her native country Puerto Rico, or presently, the Universe, Zuleyka enjoys working up a sweat with activities like jogging, spinning, weightlifting and dancing. She is also a self-professed fan of the Latin version of “American Idol.”

As Miss Universe, Zuleyka will spend the next year championing the official causes of MISS UNIVERSE®, which include increasing HIV/AIDS awareness by focusing on women's health and reproductive issues as well as forging relationships with organizations committed to research and education, such as the Global Health Council, God’s Love We Deliver, GMHC (Gay Men’s Health Crisis) and amfAR.
The Miss Universe Organization, producers of the MISS UNIVERSE®, MISS USA® and MISS TEEN USA® competitions, is a Donald J. Trump and NBC partnership.

www.missuniverse.com

Alti Aylik@ "Yalan Hakkinda Her Sey" /Apartman Projesi 12 Eylul '06 Sali

YALANLA ILGILI HERSEY acilis/ Sokak Partisi
12 eylul 19:30-24:00 Apartman Projesi Seyhbender sokak no 4/ 1, Tunel , Beyoglu

Party icin icinde yalan/dolan la ilgili Cd getirebilirsiniz.

1999 yilindan bu yana cagdas sanat alaninda projeler ureten ve bu uretimlere ev sahipligi yapan ve bir sanatci inisiyatifi olan Apartman Projesi “Yalanla ilgili hersey” isimli sergide iclerinde farkli disiplinlerden de katilimcilarin oldugu 60 kisinin resim, cizgi, video ,obje den olusan islerini mekanin 23 metre karelik alaninda bir araya getiriyor.


“Yalanla ilgili hersey “ in proje tasarim ve koordinasyonunu saglayan Selda Asal’in sergiye iliskin aciklamasi sergi brosurunde kisaca soyle yer aliyor “Yurt disinda bir sure kaldiginizda ,sergiye gelen insanlar genelde yaptiginiz sergiyi anlamaya calismak ,sanat konusmaktan cok ,size politikayla ilgili sorular sormayi tercih ederler.Bu ,kacamak cevap vermeyi prensip edinmis Turkiye’nin, tum gunahlari ve sevaplarinin bir anda uzerinize coktugu zamandir…
Bize ogretilenler,bize aktarilanlar, bizim kendi cabamizla ogrendiklerimiz ,guvendigimiz yazarlardan edindiklerimiz ,bildiklerimiz ,uzeri ortulen coksey vs..vs…cok karmakarisik bir surec yasanir…..yalanlar,gercekler, az gercekler, yumusatilmis gercekler,stratejilere gore duzenlenmis yeniden gercekler , bizim sandiginiz gercekler …Bu sergi heran her zaman bize dolanan yalan, sahte ,yanilsamayi bize degdigi noktalardan ifade etmek, edebilmekle ilgili .

Yurt ici ve yurt disindan 60 katilimcinin yer alacagi isimler soyle:

Serdar Akinan ,Evrim Altug,Neslinur Akgun,Nancy Atakan, Alti Aylik (Kristina Kramer ve Oyku Ozsoy, Sophie Nys'in katilimiyla) ,Arzu Basaran ,Burak Bedenlier ,Banu Birecikligil,Ozge Baykan,Gaye Boralioglu,Osman Bozkurt,Antonio Casentino ,Elif Celebi ,Daghan Celayir ,Ali Cindoruk , Thorbjorn Reuter Christiansen ,Julien Collieux ,Elmas Deniz,Mine Ertan,Murat Ertel,Mehmet Dere,Memed Erdener,Inci Eviner ,Inci Furni ,Hakan Gursoytirak Komet,,Emily Hermant ,Götz Holborn, Juul Hondius & Dorothee Meyer , Perihan Magden ,Basim Magdy ,jillian Mcdonald,Ali Met,Erhan Muratoglu ,Eda Nazli Noyan ,Esra Okyay ,Yasemin Ozkaya,Nilufer Ormanli, Ceren Oykut ,Cuneyt Ozdemir,Mustafa Pancar,Neriman Polat ,Ekin Saclioglu ,Canan Senol,Murat Tosyali,Nadja Tsulukidze,Cetin Tuker ,Vahit Tuna,FatmaTulin ,Can Turkinan,Mustafa Uyal,Sencer Vardarman ,Katleen Vermeir,Ronny Heiremans,,Adnan Yildiz & Arman Akinci,Ali Yorgancioglu,Mary Zygouri & Matteo Fraterno

Apartman Projesi mekaninda Iki aylik atolye calismasina dayanan bu isler Seyhbender sokak no 4/ 1, Tunel , Beyoglu’nda ‘Pazar ve Pazartesi gunlerinin disinda saat 16:00 ve 20:00 arasinda 12 Eylul –30 Ekim de izlenebilinecek.

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ALL ABOUT LIES /vernissage: 12 th September at 19:30 Seyhbender sokak no 4/ 1, Tunel , Beyoglu

Apartment Project, an art initiative producing contemporary art projects since 1999, presents `All About Lies” bringing together work - paintings, drawings, videos and objects - by 60 participants from different disciplines to be exhibited in its 23m2 space.

In the exhibition brochure the project’s designer and coordinator Selda Asal describes it briefly:

When you stay abroad for some reason or other people usually prefer to ask you questions about politics rather than trying to understand your exhibition or talking about art. This is the moment when Turkey - a country that has made a rule of giving evasive answers - weighs down on you with all its sins and good deeds. Things we were taught, that were transmitted to us, things we learned through our own efforts, those we learned from writers we trust, things we know, the many things that are veiled etc. etc..a complex process_ lies, truths, slight truths, lightened truths, strategically reformulated truths, presupposed truths_

This exhibition is about expressing, being able to articulate lies, pretenses and illusions we are always entangled in at the points they touch us.

An international group of 60individuals have participated in the project:

Serdar Akinan, Evrim Altug, Neslinur Akgun, Nancy Atakan, Alti Aylik (Kristina Kramer and Oyku Ozsoy, with Sophie Nys's contribution), Arzu Basaran, Burak Bedenlier, Banu Birecikligil, Ozge Baykan, Gaye Boralioglu, Osman Bozkurt, Antonio Casentino, Elif Celebi, Daghan Celayir, Ali Cindoruk, Thorbjorn Reuter Christiansen, Julien Collieux, Elmas Deniz, Mine Ertan, Murat Ertel, Mehmet Dere, Memed Erdener, Inci Eviner, Inci Furni, Hakan Gursoytirak, Emily Hermant, Götz Holborn,Komet, Juul Hondius & Dorothee Meyer, Perihan Magden,Basim Magdy, Jillian Mcdonald, Ali Met, Erhan Muratoglu, Eda Nazli Noyan, Ceren Oykut, Nilufer Ormanli, Yasemin Ozkaya, Mustafa Pancar, Neriman Polat, Esra Okyay, Cuneyt Ozdemir, Ekin Saclioglu, Canan Senol, Murat Tosyali, Nadja Tsulukidze, Cetin Tuker, Vahit Tuna, FatmaTulin, Can Turkinan, Mustafa Uyal, Sencer Vardarman, Katleen Vermeir&Ronny Heiremans, AdnanYildiz & Arman Akinci, Ali Yorgancioglu, Mary Zygouri & Matteo Fraterno

The projects created in the two month long workshop held at Apartment Project will be on view between 12 September and 30 October, Tuesday to Saturday from 16:00 to 20:00 at Seyhbender Sokak NO 4/1, Tunel.

Alti Aylik Art Review Dergisinde /Temmuz 2006 ****Alti Aylik in Art Review Magazine /July 2006

4 Mayıs'tan Fotoğraflar / Photos from 4th of May

Tartışma:Alternatif Sanat Mekanlarının Sürdürebilirliği / Sustainability of Alternative Art Spaces

Alternatif Sanat Mekanlarının Sürdürülebilirliği

4 Mayıs 2006, Perşembe
18:30-20:30 Tartışma
20:30-22:00 Müzik ve içecekler


Geçtiğimiz şubat ayında açılan Altı Aylık, sanatçılar ve güncel sanatla ilgilenen herkes için karşılıklı iletişimin ana rol oynadığı demokratik bir proje mekanı olma hedefiyle açıldı. Karaköy’de bulunan mekan, inisiyatifimizin fiziksel uzantısını oluşturuyordu. Ne yazik ki, Galata’dan Karaköy’e doğru uzanan mutenalaştırma hattının içinde yer alan Altı Aylık 6 Mayıs günü kapanıyor ancak inisiyatif varlığını başka bir düzlemde devam ettirecek.

Mekandan ayrılmadan önce, resmi politikalar çerçevesinde gittikçe sıkıştırılan ve nefes alma alanları kısıtlanan inisiyatiflerin, alternatif sanat mekanlarının sürdürebilirliği konusunu tartışmaya açmak, tüm inisiyatifleri ve sanatçıları aramızda görmek istiyoruz.

İstanbul, Oda Projesi’nin deyişiyle imkansızın bir arada var olduğu bir yapıya sahipken, bilinçli bir politika ile homojen hale getirilme, her yeri aynılaştırma sürecinin yoğun baskısı altında. Bu planlı projeden nasibini alan sanat mekanları gittikçe kurumsallaşarak bürokratik ve statik bir yapıya bürünüyor, özelleştiriliyor, bunun uzantısı olarak büyük müzelerin açılmasına doğru yönelim hızla artıyor. Bu ortamda, daha esnek, yeni üretimlere açık, farklı iletişim stratejilerinin deneyimlendiği sanat mekanlarının hayatta kalabilmesi gittikçe güçleşiyor. Karşılaşılan problemlerin cözümüne yönelik bireysel gayretler çoğunlukla hayal kırıklığı ile sonuçlanıyor. Bu sebeple, kollektif çabaya ve baskı grubu oluşturmaya ihtiyaç duyulmakta.

Altı Aylık’ta gercekleştirilecek olan tartışmayı pratik problemlere çözüm aramaya yönelik olarak başlatmak, özellikle de bu problemler karşısında birlikte nasıl bir strateji uygulanması gerektiği - karşılıklı farkındalık, bağımsız bir paylasım alanı, bir platform olusturulması- çerçevesinde geliştirmek istiyoruz.

İstanbul Teknik Üniversitesi Sanat Tarihi Bölümü araştırma görevlisi Pelin Tan’ın sanatçı inisiyatifleri üzerine yapmış olduğu araştırmadan da beslenecek ve Altı Aylık’ta ilki gerçekleştirilecek olan bu buluşmanın ses kayıtları, sonrasında oluşturulacak olan blog adresinde yayınlanacaktır. Bu buluşmaların devamının farklı mekanların ev sahipliğinde sürdürülmesi amaçlanmaktadır.

Adres:
Altı Aylık
Mumhane Cad. No:162 Kat:2 Karaköy
(Tophane meydanında bulunan eski hamam ve Alpet benzin istasyonunun arasındaki sokaktan girip sağa sapınca soldaki bina. Güllüoğlu’nun karşısı)

Ayrıntılı program: www.altiaylik.blogspot.com adresinden takip edilebilir.

e-mail adresi: altiaylik@googlemail.com


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Sustainability of Alternative Art Spaces
4 May 2006
18:30-20:30 Discussion
20:30-22:00 Music and drinks

Alti Aylik opened last February as a democratic project space aiming to foreground communication between artists and everybody who has an interest in contemporary art. The space in Karakoy was a psychical extension of our initiative. Unfortunately and unexpectedly, Alti Aylik is closing down on May 6th due to its location inside the gentrification zone extending from Galata to Karakoy; something we could anticipate, but perhaps did not want to acknowledge. Yet the initiative will continue to exist on another level.

Before we leave the space we would like open to discussion the issue of the sustainability of art initiatives and alternative art spaces within a context of oppressive and suffocating official politics. We will be happy to see all initiatives and artists among us.

The intensity of the experience of this transformation is especially strong in Istanbul. While Istanbul - as Oda Projesi has remarked – has a structure that brings together impossibilities, the city is overwhelmed by a conscious politics of homogenization. Through this process art venues become privatized, institutionalized and they acquire bureaucratic and static structures – hence the growing inclination towards large-scale museums. This situation makes more difficult the survival of flexible art spaces promoting new production practices and the experience of alternative communication strategies. The outcome of most individual efforts to resolve the problems we are faced with is disillusionment. It is for this reason that there is a need for collective effort and exerting pressure on official cultural politics.

Our intention in initiating a discussion at Alti Aylik is to seek solutions to practical problems and to exchange ideas on what kind of a collective strategy can be adapted within a framework of mutual awareness, an independent space for sharing and creating a platform.

During this initial meeting at Alti Aylik Pelin Tan, who is a research assistant in the Art History Department at Istanbul Teknik University will contribute with her project on art initiatives and the sound recordings of the discussion will later be published on a weblog. Our goal is to continue with these meetings in different locations.

Address:
Altı Aylık
Mumhane Str. No:162 2nd floor Karaköy
(In Tophane Square, take the street between old hammam and Alpet gas station, turn right at the end of the road, opposite of Gulluoglu baklava)

www.altiaylik.blogspot.com

e-mail address: altiaylik@googlemail.com