Hisham Fageeh is a Saudi artist and Social activist. On his Twitter account he supports the movement for abolishing the ban on women driving vehicles in Saudi Arabia.

The school is used as a Biennial venue for the second time. The exodus of the Greek population of Turkey started after the foundation of the republic. A pogrom against the greek population in 1955 made lots of Istanbulian greeks leave. The schools were left behind orphaned.

Two years long the İstanbulians were protesting for the Emek
Cinema, a hundred years old Movie theatre.

The Emek had been the location of countless Movi Premieres on Yeşilçam Sokak, the Turkish Broadway.Sometimes the İstanbul Film Festival would revive thge usage of Yeni Rüya Cinema as well.

RikschaFahrt by artist in residence Carla Mercedes Hihn from the Berlin residency program in Istanbul. Video by Dirk Holzberg, Musik Riuchi Sakamoto und Alva Noto.

Urban structures, urbanity, nature and landscapes are issues of Carla Mercedes Hihn  installations and drawings. She is developing a new space, interacting with the architecture and creating a multi-dimensional situations.

Carla Mercedes Hihn

The Taksim Square is a crazy mass since November 2012. It is hard to believe, that a commercial building in the shape of a Caserne in historism style is planned to replace Gezi Park. The Atatürk Cultural center shall get demolished. The government wishes to get applause for this plans from lots of their voters. To disregard the protests of so many people is a sign of an authoritarian government and a support of many followers as undemocratic as their leaders.

Mack the spook

And the spook, it has visions,
And it spreads them all around.
And it breeds all this creatures,
From a crowd of blind Believers

There are some hiding in darkness
while others are searching for light
And you see the ones in brightness
Those in darkness drop from sight.

The Atatürk Kültür Merkezi (AKM/Atatürk Cultural Center) was planned and build between 1946 and 1977 as a cultural hall to influence the direction for modern and contemporary culture in the country. Today competing interests struggle to shape AKM towards ideological lines based on their own visions. The reconstruction of the whole Taksim square is a partof the transformation of cultural symbolism.

Amazing that no one made the suggestion until now to build a memorial for the victims of bloody 1st of May 1977.

Also have a look at this post about an exhibition on the topic Atatürk Kültür merkezi:

http://www.inenart.eu/?p=3586

also related topic:

occupy Gezi Park: http://senseoftime.inenart.eu/?p=4108

Transformation of Pierre Loti: http://senseoftime.inenart.eu/?p=3135

Second Life in Ayvansaray: http://senseoftime.inenart.eu/?p=3414

Urban icons in Ayvansaray: http://senseoftime.inenart.eu/?p=3452

Photos by Nicolas Brodard: “I started this photographic series in 2010 and have amended it during my frequent trips to Istanbul.