Istanbul’s Mamut Art Project launched its 2020 edition with a revised format compliant with the latest public health guidelines. The Mamut Art Project 2020 exhibition kicked off on both physical and virtual platforms offering enhanced accessibility for art lovers on Oct. 27. The selection of the exhibition will on display at the project’s brand-new venue, Yapı Kredi bomontiada, as well as on their online platform until Nov. 8.
The Mamut Art Project has been providing a dynamic platform for independent and emerging artists and the concept for attainable art since 2013. The project accepts applications from independent contemporary artists without any restrictions of age, education, medium or theme during a two-month application period every year. Then, a jury of five, which each year consists of different leading names of the Turkish art world, selects 50 artists among these applications. The selected artists have their own individual spaces where they can showcase their work within the Mamut Art Project exhibitions.
The exhibition of the project will showcase nearly 400 works of 49 artists selected from over 1,500 applications this year. An overarching theme in this year’s edition of Mamut is the exploration of global issues in light of the changing world around us. The 49 artists exhibit a wide range of disciplines including photography, installation, collage, illustration, painting, street art, video and 3D works across ceramics and sculpture around this theme.
Visits to the exhibit are allowed by appointment and are free of charge. Through a process of continual evolution that stays true to the original vision, the Mamut Art Project has succeeded in expanding the creative ecology of the arts sector by introducing greater numbers of new talent into the field every year. Asserting its role as a key highlight in the city’s art calendar, the 2020 edition of the Mamut Art Project, for the first time this year, presents its collection of artwork via an online platform that will be accessible to all audiences. Bringing art audiences and artists together in a variety of formats on its website and social media channels, the project also functions as an archive for its artists in this way.
Seren Kohen, the founding director of Mamut Art Project, said, regarding the 2020 edition, that: “We thought really hard about how we might continue to pursue our mission to connect with our artists, collectors and all our followers, considering the conditions we find ourselves in. We are confident that we’ve found a structure that adapts to the present requirements and one that makes most of the new possibilities it offers. In all sincerity and with enthusiasm we are ready and eager to open our doors to welcome our visitors, and to introduce them to the renewed Mamut 2020 and our 49 artists.” This year's jury includes Sabancı University Visual Arts and Visual Communication Design Program Coordinator, artist and musician Selçuk Artut; curator, writer and director of the SAHA association Çelenk Bafra; artist Aslı Çavuşoğlu; the founder of Gallery ArtSümer Aslı Sümer and collector and founder of Odunpazarı Modern Museum (OMKM), Erol Tabanca.
