Pavilion of Turkey

53rd International Art Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia

Banu Cennetoglu, Ahmet Ögüt

LAPSES

curated by Basak Senova
http://www.venicebiennial-turkey.org

Pavilion of Turkey
Commissioner: Istanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts
Artists: Banu Cennetoglu, Ahmet Ögüt
Curator: Basak Senova
Assistant Curator: Nazli Gürlek
Project Coordinator: Ustüngel Inanç (Istanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts)

Arsenale, Venice
June 7 – November 22, 2009
Professional Preview: 3-6 June

Only by recognizing lapses do we realize our ability to restructure memory. Today, visual archives from the media form our collective memory. Is it possible to reveal diverse memory formations conceivable through lapses?

The "Lapses" project, developed for the Pavilion of Turkey, consists of projects that demonstrate how the perception of "occurring events" can vary and lead to the differing narrations of history because of lapses in collective memory. The project has been realized through works by two artists: Banu Cennetoglu's "CATALOG" and Ahmet Ögüt's "Exploded City". Both projects reveal the possibility for diverse memory formations or diverse narratives, conceivable through lapses.

The project is accompanied by a book series of three volumes: the first volume which is edited by Basak Senova explores the conceptual framework, the process and the spatial design; the second volume, edited by Jalal Toufic, functions as the source, inspiration, reference for the entire project, consisting of philosophical articles; and the third volume, edited by Basak Senova, discuses "lapses" through four case studies. The book series was designed by Eray Makal, 12punto.

The books are available for sale at Mondadori Electa bookshops at Giardini and Corderie dell'Arsenale.

The "Lapses" project is realized under the auspices of the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, with the contribution of Promotion Fund of the Turkish Prime Ministry.

Banu Cennetoglu was born in 1970 in Ankara; lives and works in Istanbul. Cennetoglu works with photography, installation and printed media. Her research explores areas of socio-political uncertainty and documentation of such uncertainty as well as the questioning of the ability of the photographic medium to document. After a BA in psychology, she pursued her studies in Photography in Paris. Cennetoglu lived in New York (1996 to 2002) and in Amsterdam (2002-2004) where she has been a guest artist at the Rijksakademie, before moving back to Istanbul in 2006. Here, in the same year, she founded BAS, a space focusing on artist books and other printed media works. Among the recent exhibtions her work was included are Geographies of the invisible / Max Museo, 5th Berlin Biennial, 10th Istanbul Biennial, 1st Athens Biennial, Brave New Worlds / La Coleccion Jumex and Walker Art Center, and Wherever You Go / San Fransisco Art Institute.

Ahmet Ögüt was born in 1981 in Diyarbakir; lives and works in Amsterdam. Ögüt works with a variety of media such as video, photography, installation, drawing and printed media. His practice incorporates interventions created departing from social and political realities of everyday life and recent history. He received his BA from the Fine Arts Faculty of Hacettepe University, and his MFA from the Art and Design Faculty of Yildiz Technical University. Ögüt has been a guest artist at the Rijksakademie in Amsterdam in 2007-2008. Exhibitions in which his work has been included are among others: The Generational / New Museum, 7th SITE Santa Fe Biennial, 5th Berlin Biennial, Fuild Street / KIASMA Museum of Contemporary Art, 1st Contemporary Art Biennale of Thessaloniki, 9th Istanbul Biennial, Be[com]ing Dutch / Van Abbemuseum, Stalking with Stories / Apexart, Car Culture / Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art; and solo shows at Centre d'Art Santa Mònica, Küntlerhaus Bremen and Kunsthalle Basel.

For additional press information and inquires please contact:
Ayse Bulutgil
Istanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts
Istiklal Caddesi No:64
34435 Istanbul – Turkey
Tel: +90 212 334 0787