Rainbow in the Dark
14 November 2014–18 January 2015
Opening: 13 November, 19.30–21h
SALT Galata
Bankalar Caddesi 11
Karaköy 34420
Istanbul
Turkey
Curated by Sebastian Cichocki and Galit Eilat in collaboration with SALT
Rainbow in the Dark opens an investigation into contemporary art from a post-secular perspective, and aims to challenge the outdated opposition of the religious and secular, while looking for the divine and irrational beyond the horizon of modernity. It considers the power of popular religious imagination and how artists relate to the influence of its symbols and materialisations in everyday aesthetic and political life.
Examining the unexpected alliance between the Roman-Catholic Church and avant-garde artistic practice during the Martial Law period in Poland in the ’80s, a core group of works, tackling issues related to religion and spirituality, were selected from the collection of the Museum of Modern Art in Warsaw. The inquiry expanded to address the recent growth of populism in religious movements, resulting in further invitations to artists practicing in Turkey and internationally.
Kader Attia, Fayçal Baghriche, Mirosław Bałka, Fatma Bucak, Köken Ergun, Nilbar Güreş, Jonathan Horowitz, Gülsün Karamustafa, Paweł Kwiek, Virgínia de Medeiros, Mujeres Públicas, Teresa Murak, Walid Raad, Zofia Rydet, Wael Shawky, Slavs & Tatars, Zbigniew Warpechowski, Artur Żmijewski
Paweł Althamer
Draftsmen’s Congress
14–23 November 2014
SALT Beyoğlu, Forum
İstiklal Caddesi 136
Beyoğlu 34430
Istanbul
Turkey
Opening in tandem with Rainbow in the Dark, Paweł Althamer’s ongoing project Draftsmen’s Congress invites visitors and local activists to communicate through image rather than words. Initiated at the 7th Berlin Biennale in 2012, and since held in the New Museum, New York and the Ullens Center for Contemporary Art, Beijing, the edition in İstanbul is dedicated to the spiritual, irrational and religious aspects of producing images; touching upon how one can transmit an experience which is beyond representation.
During the congress, SALT Beyoğlu will also host the film programme Extremely Loud, Incredibly Close, including movies by Paweł Althamer, Yael Bartana, Fayçal Baghriche, Agnieszka Polska, Wael Shawky and Artur Żmijewski.
Rainbow in the Dark and Draftsmen’s Congress are realized as a collaboration between the Museum of Modern Art in Warsaw and SALT, which was initiated with the exhibition Into the Country in SALT Ulus, Ankara.
These events are co-financed by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage of the Republic of Poland, as part of the cultural program celebrating the 600th anniversary of Polish-Turkish diplomatic relations throughout 2014.
Further press information and contact:
[email protected] / www.artmuseum.pl/prasa