The Making Of İstanbul Modern

“The Making of Istanbul Modern” was a visual story that documented Istanbul's privileged status as a seaport and the process of founding Istanbul Modern. The fruit of a joint effort, the exhibition called attention to the context of Istanbul Modern which opened its doors to visitors for the first time in 2004, reviewing the museum’s relationship with the city, the historical and present memory of the Galata-Tophane axis on which it is located, and the current position of the warehouse as a public space.

Istanbul is located at the meeting point of water and land, where the land - opening itself to the sea– transcends all barriers of national identity. Shaped by the common culture and lifestyles of those living beside a sea, Istanbul became a gateway that opened its specific topography to "the outside" or "the other", displaying an existence far beyond that of its own civilizations.

The port of Galata, one of the oldest districts of the Bosphorus, was constructed towards the end of the 19th century and received three large waves of immigrants. Thus, the transformation of the port’s fourth warehouse into a fully-equipped modern museum has also opened this historical gateway, which served trade for centuries, to the service of art and the general public.

This exhibition was designed to incorporate the spatial volume of the museum into the exhibition`s concept and structure. Installation of site-specifically sized photographs emphasized the naked museum space which has the potential of opening itself to different architectural arrangements depending on the requirements of each exhibition.

“The Making of Istanbul Modern” had five sections that shifted the focus of the exhibition from the macro to the micro level. These were: "Istanbul, the Seaport", "The Galata-Tophane Axis", "Modern Gateways to the World", "From Dream to Reality" and "From Warehouse to Istanbul Modern". The first section examined the panorama of Istanbul – the subject material of countless artists, photographers, and writers over the centuries – as a seaport. The second section focused on the Galata-Tophane axis as an indicator of the neighborhood’s social and cultural development, while the third visually locates the position of the maritime warehouses built from the end of 19th century on Istanbul’s geographical and cultural map. The fourth section reviewed the process of founding a museum of modern art in Istanbul, from the genesis of the idea through the passionate quest of 17 years. The last section documented the transformation of the 50-plus year old Antrepo No. 4 building into a fully equipped modern art museum with visual, textual and oral material.

Curator: Fulya Erdemci