Ateş Alpar (b. 1988, Nusaybin / Mardin).
Ateş Alpar, who conveys the images to the viewer in a detailed and meticulous way with real and metaphorical meaning, works with various media including video, performance, sound, photography, and site-specific installations. Focusing on issues such as border, security tools, cultural destruction/colonial politics and identity fluidity; the ambiguity of history and the concept of memory are at the centre of the artistic productions of Alpar. His work consists of long-term projects which span over years; spreading the themes he dwells on over time, Alpar conveys his observations by filtering his experiences from the paths he traveled in different periods. Incorporating collective thinking practices into the production process, the artist publicises their experiences and encourages dialogue. The elaborative approach that divides and reassembles history is aimed at building a bridge between the past, present and future; it allows the viewer to track the zig-zag traces of the processes of social and cultural change and lays the groundwork for the construction of counter-memory and counter-archive.
Alpar currently lives and works in Istanbul.
Solo Exhibitions
Deeply and Profoundly / Bilsart, Istanbul (2023)
Stone Shell Silent / Merdiven Art Space, Istanbul (2023)
Selected Group Exhibitions
New Lands / Arkas Sanat Alaçatı, İzmir (2024)
Body Fragments / Pilot Gallery, Istanbul (2024)
2019 / Zilberman, Istanbul (2023)
KarmaComa / Anna Laudel, Bodrum (2023)
It Doesn't Matter Until It Does / Martch Art Project, Istanbul (2023)
Revolte / Zemin Gallery, Berlin (2023)
7.8.7.5 / The Grey Space in the Middle, Den Haag (2023)
The Uncanny / Meteor, Bursa (2022)
Lost Wax / Ferda Art Platform, Istanbul (2022)
Let’s Go to My Place / Koli Art Space, Istanbul (2022)
Forms of Silence / Istanbul Edebiyat Evi, Istanbul (2021)
Turkish Delight / Bethnal Green, London (2020)
Queer Ballet / İzmir (2019)
Uprising, From Stonewall to Turkey / Geneva (2019)
LadyFest / Dramaqueer, Istanbul (2018)
Performances
The Universal History of Stone / Istanbul (2022)
Looking at the Ruins / Mardin (2022)
Until All the Waters Find Their Cracks / Koli Art Space, Istanbul (2022),
Between Us / Istanbul (2021)
Workshops and Talks
Artist Talk (with Kübra Uzun), Bilsart / Istanbul (2023)
Representation and Visibility in Photography, Boğaziçi University / Istanbul (2023)
Coversation on Photography Projects, Koç University / Istanbul (2023)
Queer Ballet and Creeps, İFSAK Gender Group / Istanbul (2022)
Let’s Go to My Place, Koli Art Space / Istanbul (2022)
Contemporary Art Talks, Younger Art for Adults MİŞAR / Mardin (2021)
Residency Program
Performistanbul / Istanbul (2022)
Talk Series Organisation (In collaboration with Performistanbul)
Burden of Looking (After) I - Catastrophe, Images and Utopias / Istanbul (2023)
Burden of Looking (After) II - Catastrophe, Mourning and Words / Istanbul (2023)
Burden of Looking (After) III - Solidarity Networks / Istanbul (2023)
Publication
Fail Books, PhotoZine (2021)