Contemporary Istanbul’s 11th edition opens this week (3 - 6 November 2016) bringing together leading contemporary art galleries from Turkey and around the world, giving a regional and international focus to the dynamic contemporary art scene that has developed in Istanbul in recent decades. With a distinct character as a place to discover and rediscover significant artists, Contemporary Istanbul (CI) spreads over the 14,000 m2 spaces of Lütfi Kırdar ICEC Rumeli Hall and Istanbul Congress Center.
 
Notable for its unique position both geographically and culturally, CI pays undivided attention to Turkish contemporary art and also prides itself on bringing together galleries, artists and collectors from the entire region including the Caucasus, the Black Sea, the former Russian Federation and the Middle East, as well as other countries from around the world.
 
This year, CI presents 1,500 artworks by 520 artists, exhibited by 70 leading and emerging galleries from over 24 cities across 20 countries.

More info: contemporaryistanbul.com

Ali Güreli, CI’s Chairman comments: “We are enthusiastically celebrating Contemporary Istanbul’s 11th anniversary this year. Istanbul inspires those of us who organise the fair and has the fundamentals of a global city, both in terms of the volume of art it hosts and the environment that sustains it. After facing a difficult year across the region, we have realised that to position Istanbul as an even stronger hub for culture, we have to work more closely alongside other institutions, museums, galleries and key players in the industry. As of 2017, we have therefore decided to change dates of CI to the second week of September to coincide with the opening of the Istanbul Biennial, founded and organised by the Istanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts, as well as other important art events in the city.”

Presented for the first time at the fair is Collectors’ Stories, an exhibition of artworks personally selected by 60 collectors from their private collections. Also new this year is CI Design, which focuses on functional art and unique design pieces and is directed by Susan McMurrain. Returning to the fair are the sections: Solo Shows, curated by a single artist or artist group; and the fair’s programme of talks CI Dialogues. Dedicated to showcasing new media artworks, Plugin will gather galleries, architecture and design studios focusing on new media related initiatives.
 
The fair is also pleased to announce the launch of the “Best Curated Booth Award” at CI 2016. All participants of the fair are eligible for this award, which was launched to recognise exceptional curatorial and artistic concepts on galleries’ booths. The jury consists of Marc Olivier Wahler; CI’s Artistic Advisor, Marcus Graf; CI’s Program Director, Derya Yücel; Curator of the Australia China Art Foundation, Jeremy Gales; and Yashar Samimi Mofakham, Co-Founder and Curator of Bread & Salt Projects. The winner will be announced on 3 November.
 
Organised by CI Associate Sponsor Yıldız Holding, the Ülker Children’s Art Workshop will also be held at Lütfi Kırdar ICEC Rumeli Hall to help children appreciate art from an early age and develop their imaginative skills.  

Galleries & Emerging Galleries

Mixer, Istanbul

55 Bellechasse, Paris

Olcayart, Istanbul

AB Gallery, Seoul

ÖKTEM&AYKUT, Istanbul 

ACAF Projects, Shanghai

PG ART GALLERY, Istanbul

ALAN Istanbul, Istanbul

Pi Artworks, Istanbul, London

Analix Forever - The Department, Geneva

PIRAMID SANAT, Istanbul

Aria Art Gallery, Florence

Project ArtBeat, Tbilisi

ARTCOLLECTION, Istanbul

RED art Istanbul, Istanbul

ART On Istanbul, Istanbul

REM Art Space, Istanbul

BERLINARTPROJECTS, Berlin, Istanbul

Savina Gallery, St. Petersburg

Bozlu Art Project, Istanbul

Soda, Istanbul

C24 Gallery, New York

The Pill – Contemporary Art Gallery, Istanbul

C.A.M. Galeri, Istanbul

Versus Art Project, Istanbul

C E P Gallery  | Contemporary Exhibition

Víctor Lope Arte Contemporáneo, Barcelona

Platform, Istanbul

Villa Del Arte Galleries, Barcelona

CI Editions, Istanbul

x-ist, Istanbul

Daire Galeri, Istanbul

xavierlaboulbenne, Berlin

Dastan's Basement, Tehran

Yavuz Gallery, Singapore

Dirimart, Istanbul

Zilberman Gallery, Istanbul, Berlin

Gaia Gallery, Istanbul

Galeri 77, Istanbul

CI Design

Galeri Artist, Istanbul

D'Art, Istanbul

Galeri Baraz, Istanbul

ECNP Galeri, Istanbul

Galeri/Miz, Istanbul

M.int, Istanbul

Galeri Nev Istanbul, Istanbul

Project Design by Arçelik, Istanbul

Galeri Siyah Beyaz, Ankara

Toz Design, Istanbul

Galeria Joan Gaspar, Barcelona

Galleria Russo, Roma, Istanbul

Solo-Shows

Galeria SENDA, Barcelona

Agnieszka Brzeżańska (Kasia Michalski Gallery)

Galerie Lelong, Paris

Ahmet Ertuğ (Galeria SENDA)

Galerie Michael Schultz, Berlin

Ahmet Güneştekin (Marlborough Gallery)

Galerie Mark Hachem, Paris, Beirut

Ahmet Sarı (C E P Gallery)

Gallery One, Ramallah

Adrian Hermanides (xavierlaboulbenne)

Gama Gallery, Istanbul

Buğra Erol (BERLINARTPROJECTS)

Isabel Croxatto Galería, Santiago

İlhan Koman (ARTCOLLECTION)

Karavil Contemporary, London

Mustafa Pancar (Galeri Miz)

Kasia Michalski, Warsaw

Matthias Weischer (KÖNIG GALERIE)

KÖNIG GALERIE, Berlin

SARP (Yavuz Gallery)

KRANK Art Gallery, Istanbul

Shahriar Ahmadi (Dastan’s Basement)

Lazarides, London

LICHT FELD Gallery, Basel

Liquid art system, Capri, Istanbul

M17 Contemporary Art Center, Kiev

Marlborough Gallery, New York

MERKUR, Istanbul

Plugin

ACAF Projects, Shanghai

AKINCI, Amsterdam
Aria Art Gallery, Florence

artnivo.com project space, Istanbul

Art On Istanbul, Istanbul

C24 Gallery, New York

Gaia Gallery, Istanbul

Galeri Siyaz Beyaz, Ankara

Galeria SENDA, Barcelona

Moving Image Immersive Media, New York