13th Istanbul Biennial 14/9-20/10 2013
Curator: Fulya Erdemci

“Mom,  Am I Barbarian?”

The electronic version of the Biennial Guide is available here.

The notion of the public domain as a political forum is the focal point of the 13th Istanbul Biennial. A highly contested concept  serves as a matrix to generate ideas and develop practices that question contemporary forms of democracy,  challenge current models of spatio-economic politics, problematize the given concepts of civilization and barbarity as standardized positions and languages and, above all, unfold the role of contemporary art as an agent that both makes and unmakes what is considered public.

Initially conceptualized to include many projects that would intervene with urban public spaces, the 13th Istanbul Biennial exhibitions is now taking place at interior venues as per the curatorial decision. 13th Istanbul Biennial curator Fulya Erdemci decided that under given circumstances in the city realizing the urban public space projects might undermine their very essence and purpose, and it would be more meaningful for the exhibition to move away from urban public space.

The 13th Istanbul Biennial exhibitions can be visited free of charge between 14 September and 20 October at Antrepo no.3 in Tophane, Galata Greek Primary School in Karaköy, ARTER and SALT Beyoğlu on İstiklal Street and 5533 in İMÇ 5th Block.