For Icelandic-Danish artist Olafur Eliasson, some encounters are more expected than others. Yet his "Your Unexpected Encounter" at Istanbul Modern undeniably offers a genuinely surprising experience.
Eliasson, who has garnered widespread acclaim for his projects and works around the world, bases his art on the idea that experiences are defined by the meanings attributed to them rather than being inherently given. He arrives in Türkiye with his first solo exhibition, presenting a comprehensive selection from his 30-year career, which he describes as a survey.
Expressing great excitement about holding such an exhibition in Istanbul, Eliasson hopes visitors will welcome this "encounter" with "open eyes and open arms." This exhibition is an experience that demands the active "participation" of the viewer. According to Eliasson, engagement enhances the experience.
Unlike the controlled aspects of our personal lives, jobs and many other daily responsibilities, Eliasson offers the audience a new space where unexpected experiences come with relaxed control mechanisms. It is a surprise, a deviation from the norm, an opposition: a bit of chaos.
In this context, Eliasson sees museums as excellent places to rehearse and take risks. These spaces, where Eliasson takes risks, encourage the audience to approach the unexpected and share the experience. Describing his encounter with Istanbul, Eliasson says it was "something he had felt but hadn't set yet."
"If it weren't for my encounter with Istanbul about 30 years ago, I wouldn't be the artist I am today. Therefore, it's exciting to return to Istanbul, a city of great personal importance to me. The unique position of the city on the Bosporus, a crucial connection point for sea traffic, particularly interests me. Navigation, orientation and the sea have been important themes in my art for years, but these themes hold special significance in the permanent work I created for Istanbul Modern and the exhibition titled ‘Your Unexpected Encounter.’ Visitors can spend time inside the museum, find their way among the works and then turn their attention to the outside, where ships from all over the world pass by," Eliasson explains.
When visiting the exhibition, the artworks provide half of the answers, while the audience, as active participants, holds the other half – they are not mere consumers in a mall but integral participants.
Eliasson always emphasizes that his works are completed when they engage with the audience. He defines the active participation of art lovers as one of the main components of his works. The phenomena presented by the artist in different contexts or scales invite the audience to be part of a dynamic discovery process, transforming into unique experiences.
The first encounter in the exhibition, which bears traces from different geographies of the world, begins with the site-specific permanent installation “Your Unexpected Encounter,” designed by the artist specifically for the new museum building and attracting great interest. Reflective circular surfaces that contrast with the right angles of the architecture enable constantly evolving unexpected encounters.
The works on the second floor of the museum's Temporary Exhibition Hall reflect the artist's interest in perception, color, light and geometry, as well as current global discussions throughout his career. Although the works in “Your Unexpected Encounter,” consisting of installations, sculptures and photographs, are thematically brought together in the exhibition hall, they showcase the relationships and permeabilities between different disciplines, focusing on multiple subjects and concepts.
The work "Dusk to Dawn, Bosporus," specially produced for the exhibition and bringing the changing colors of the Istanbul Strait into the exhibition space, starts the exhibition journey with color experiments and watercolors. The work at the entrance of the exhibition, welcoming visitors with handmade blown glass panels arranged on log pieces called yalos, combines Eliasson's interest in color and light with water.
His site-specific work, “Sunset Kaleidoscope,” which is integrated into the architecture of Istanbul Modern, interacts with the Bosporus and transforms its movement and scenery of the Bosporus into the exhibition hall. The work gains a unique narrative within the exhibition, relating to the city and the space.
Light and the nature of light are also among the themes that stand out in the exhibition. Lenses, reflective surfaces, projections, colored glasses and kaleidoscopes, prominent in Eliasson's works, allow the artist to experiment with perception, space and geometry.
The watercolor works, part of the “Color Experiments” series, in which the artist started to produce a new color theory, also reflect the artist's productions on the axis of water, environment, and color.
In addition to the theme of water, works highlighting Eliasson's relationship with the environment also meet visitors in the exhibition space. The artist's works, referring to the effects of global warming and the melting of glaciers, created to raise awareness about the climate crisis, are also included in the exhibition.
Oya Eczacıbaşı, emphasizing Istanbul Modern's mission to host international and comprehensive contemporary art exhibitions that signal current transformations, said during the press meeting: “We are delighted to organize Olafur Eliasson’s first solo exhibition in Türkiye. We are very happy to present this comprehensive exhibition of the artist to our audience in the 20th year of our museum. The site-specific installation ‘Your Unexpected Encounter,’ produced by the artist for the central main staircase of our new building, which hosted nearly one million visitors and received international awards since its opening, has become one of the symbols of our museum from the first day. In the exhibition ‘Olafur Eliasson: Your Unexpected Encounter,’ we present a selection from the artist's 30-year career, as well as new productions considering the unique location of Istanbul Modern. For Eliasson, one of today's most important issues is the climate crisis. I think it is meaningful to open the artist's exhibition immediately after June 5, World Environment Day.”
Atalay Gümrah, CEO of Eczacıbaşı Group, emphasizing that they adopt sustainability both as a business approach and a lifestyle choice, said, “We are honored to contribute to Olafur Eliasson's exhibition, where he makes the audience a part of the dynamic discovery process, addressing sustainability and climate crisis issues in his works and increasing our awareness. Art enthusiasts will encounter unique experiences with Olafur Eliasson's unique interpretations, who produce projects around the world, especially to raise awareness about the climate crisis.”
Istanbul Modern chief curator Öykü Özsoy Sağnak points out that Olafur Eliasson's works have a playful and fascinating character that makes viewers rethink their ways of perceiving and communicating with the world. Özsoy Sağnak said: “When we encounter these works, we become aware of the realities beyond our senses, movements, the other people around us, and what we perceive with our eyes. For this reason, Olafur Eliasson often uses the pronoun ‘your’ when naming his works and exhibitions, imagining us having unexpected, surprising encounters while experiencing his works."
