“The government views us as political because we believe that the almost 20 million Kurds living in Turkey have the right to experience theater in their own language,” said actor Cihad Ekinci.
Turkey
Posted inNews
Turkey Targets Osman Kavala’s Arts Organization in Unprecedented Lawsuit
Turkey’s Trade Ministry filed a lawsuit demanding the dissolution of Anadolu Kültür, an institution founded by Kavala in 2002.
Posted inNews
US Urges Immediate Release of Art Philanthropist Osman Kavala in Turkey
The State Department released a statement denouncing the “specious charges against Kavala, his ongoing detention, and the continuing delays in the conclusion of his trial.”
Posted inNews
After Istanbul Students Detained for LGBTQ Posters, Protests Against Government Censorship Escalate
The initial protests started one month ago after President Erdoğan appointed one of his political allies as the school’s rector, inciting outrage over political motivations.
Posted inArt
Walk With Me: A Performance Artist Adapts to the Pandemic
For two weeks last fall, performance artist Alisa Oleva walked with 33 different women in Istanbul; sometimes for 30 minutes, sometimes for three hours, but always from 1500 miles away.
Posted inNews
Archaeologists in Turkey Uncover 2,400-year-old Dionysus Mask
Dionysus, the god of fertility and wine in Greek mythology, was also known as the “masked” god of theater and a patron of arts.
Posted inArt
For Turkish Women Artists and Advocates, #challengeaccepted Is About More Than Just Selfies
As femicide rates continue to rise in the country, there’s more to consider than just the surface-level gesture of #womensupportingwomen.
Posted inArt
Who Really Owns Hagia Sophia?
As the Turkish government announced that the Hagia Sophia will be converted back into a mosque, one of the primary responses worldwide has been to assert that the edifice constitutes “universal” heritage, that it belongs to all of us.
Posted inNews
Turkish Activist and Arts Philanthropist Osman Kavala Nears 1,000 Days in Prison
Kavala has been detained since 2017. Human rights activists have called for his release due to a lack of “facts, information, or evidence.”
Posted inNews
After 85 Years as a Museum, the Hagia Sophia Will Become a Mosque
Art historians and conservationists worry Turkish authorities might remove the centuries-old Byzantine mosaics that adorn it.
Posted inArt
Revisiting Photography’s First Road Trip
Ten Turkish artists follow daguerreotypist Frédéric Auguste Antoine Goupil-Fesquet’s 180-year-old journey through the Eastern Mediterranean.
Posted inNews
Turkish Arts Philanthropist Acquitted, Then Detained Again
Imprisoned since 2017, Osman Kavala was found not guilty of attempting to overthrow the government, but re-detained on new charges before he could even taste freedom.
