Habitat
December 23, 2015–May 22, 2016

Habitat

In the exhibition "Habitat", Istanbul Modern Photography Gallery brought together varied perspectives on the spaces we live in. The exhibition examined the evolving concept of space, continuously defined and redefined, through the work of 13 artists selected by Istanbul Modern’s Photography Advisory Board.

Habitat, the place where an organism lives and grows, is sometimes used to define the setting for life’s basic motion and conflict. All living creatures have to adapt to their environment or relocate in order to survive and continue their bloodlines. Today, discussions continue to center on how individuals are trying to resist the global movements carrying their cities in tow, how the ideal human habitat should be defined, and what existing conditions offer us. Our lives and perception of living spaces are framed by the roads we travel to find work or merely "to find ourselves", the journeys we take while enclosed by walls, and the physical or imaginary borders we draw. The defensive or offensive choices we make to feel safer determine our life strategies. Ultimately, our struggle to have a say on our habitats – the common stage of our lives – brings together different representations of helplessness and power and of dreams and realities.

This exhibition brought together different concerns about habitat related to the conflict and search for balance between those with an equal right to determine how the environment they inhabit should be shaped. By considering such issues as the power of metropolises over their flora and rural districts, the constant need to recycle urban memory due to changing policies and demographic concerns, and the creative struggle for the right to shelter, the exhibition drew attention to the basic requisites for existence.

Artists: Kürşat Bayhan, Kerem Ozan Bayraktar, Zeynep Beler, Görkem Ergün, Beril Gür, Çağlar Kanzık, Oğuz Karakütük, Barbaros Kayan, Gündüz Kayra, Neslihan Koyuncu, Desislava Şenay Martinova, Ali Taptık, Serkan Taycan

Curator: Sena Çakırkaya

Photography Advisory Board: Merih Akoğul, Orhan Cem Çetin, Murat Germen, Sıtkı Kösemen