Master of Arts Thesis

Master of Arts Thesis Euroculture University of Uppsala, Sweden ( Home) University of Strasbourg, France ( Host ) January, 2015 Rethinking Istanbul Biennial In The Process of Globalization Submitted by Gözde Sütçü Robin Student number home university: 820616-7945 Student number host university: 21119150 Contact details (telephone/email) +33651496731 Supervised by: Name of supervisor home university: Mathias Persson Name of supervisor host university: Alexandre Kostka Toulouse, France Signature 1 MA Programme Euroculture Declaration I, Gozde Sutcu Robin hereby declare that this thesis, entitled “Rethinking Istanbul Biennial In The Process of Globalization”, submitted as partial requirements for the MA programme Euroculture, is my own original work and expressed in my own words. Any use made within this text of works of other authors in any form (e.g. ideas, figures, texts, tables, etc.) are properly acknowledged in the text as well as in the bibliography. I hereby also acknowledge that I was informed about the regulations pertaining to the assessment of the MA thesis Euroculture and about the general completion rules for the Master of Arts Programme Euroculture. Signed: Gözde Sütçü Robin Date: 14 January 2015 2 Preface I would like to take this opportunity to thank my friends: Turkan Kantale, Louwane Courtney, Astrid Walsh and Ayse Nil Ozden. My husband, Charles Robin, deserves special recognition for supporting me during the long and arduous process of writing my thesis. I am filled with gratitude for his patience and understanding. And finally, I would also like to thank my professors; Mr. Alexandre Kostka for helping me in choosing my subject which allowed me to further identify and refine my professional goals and Mr. Mathias Persson for his effective guidance. Gözde Sütçü Robin 3 Preface…………………………………………………………………………..……4 Abstract …………………………………………………………………………..…..5 Introduction ………………………………………………..……………….….……..6 Literature Review ………………………………………………………………..…...9 Globalization……………………………………………………………………........11 Global City and the Culture Industry………………………….………….……….…13 The Cultural Policy of Turkey………………………………………………….........20 2010 European Capital of Culture: Istanbul …………………………………….......26 History of The Biennials …………………………………………………….……....29 Why A Biennial in Istanbul?........................................................................................34 The Evolution of the Istanbul Biennial…………………………………………........43 Istanbul Biennials From 1987-2013…………………………………………….…....45 1st International Istanbul Biennial…………………………………………….45 2nd International Istanbul Biennial …………………………………………...47 3rd International Istanbul Biennial ……………………………………………47 4th International Istanbul Biennial ……………………………………………48 5th International Istanbul Biennial ……………………………………………50 6th International Istanbul Biennial ……………………………………………51 7th International Istanbul Biennial ……………………………………………53 8th International Istanbul Biennial ……………………………………………55 9th International Istanbul Biennial ……………………………………………57 10th International Istanbul Biennial …………………………………………..58 11th International Istanbul Biennial ………………………………………..…60 12th Istanbul Biennial …………………………………………………………62 13th Istanbul Biennial …………………………………………………………64 Conclusion………………………………………………………………………….…73 Bibliography………………………………………………………………..………....77 4 Abstract During the 1980s and 1990s, the world witnessed a radical change in which globalization diminished the power of the nation-state and shifted that impetus to a certain number of “Global Cities.” London, New York and Tokyo appeared to be the first of these cities and they acted as the heart of the new commercial and financial geography. In order to further strengthen their status, these cities organized transnational cultural events such as fairs, festivals and biennials. Those events have been assumed as a driving force behind other political, economic and financial activities in the era of globalization. Since the 1980s, Istanbul has emerged as a candidate for a new global city at the eastern frontier of Europe. Thus, with the encouragement of the government, the private sector has begun to organize several large-scale cultural events in order to reshape the city as a global city and re-present the nation with a more European outlook. This is in keeping with the desire to facilitate Turkey’s EU accession process and attract global commercial activities. The Istanbul Biennial is one of the most important of these cultural initiatives. Thus, this research will scrutinize the Istanbul Biennial within this framework. The main premise will be: “The organization of the Istanbul Biennial aims to attract global financial activities, enable the political aspirations of the city and therefore transform the city into a global one.” Key words: Culture Industry, Global city, European Union, Cultural Policy and Istanbul Biennial. 5 Introduction Art, money, and political power have always coexisted in a complex, dynamic, and interdependent relationship. Although the relationship between these components has mostly been treated separately, a significant broader interaction becomes apparent with the conditions of globalization. Since globalization began accelerating in the 1990s, certain cities have emerged as power centers whose influence ranges beyond national borders in terms of politics, culture and economy. London, New York and Tokyo appeared to be the first of these cities and they acted as the heart of the new commercial and financial geography1. In order to further strengthen their status, these cities organized transnational cultural events such as fairs, festivals and biennials. Those events, as part of the Culture Industry, have become a driving force behind political, economical, and financial activities in the era of globalization. Istanbul, particularly after the 1980s, has emerged as a global city candidate on the eastern frontier of Europe with its potential for being a regional command and control center, with its capacity to attract global capital flow, with its multinational and multicultural social structure.2 Therefore, several cultural initiatives and activities began to be organized, in order to increase the brand value of the city and met the requirements of globalization. The liberalization policies from the 80s on had the effect of cutting off state spending for art and culture.3 This highlighted the role of the private sector in the culture industry. Thus, the private sector started to take a proactive role in organizing transnational cultural events with the encouragement of government, in order to attract global financial activities, which would eventually increase the political power of city governments. Analyzing the International Istanbul Biennials, organized by Istanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts (abbreviated hereafter as IKSV), presents an opportunity to examine the intertwined relationship of money, politics, and art—in the respective roles of private sector financing, city government, and the culture industry. 1 Saskia Sassen, “Overview” in The Global City: New York, London, Tokyo (Oxford: Princeton University Press, 1991), 4. 2 Caglar Keyder, “Capital City Resurgent: Istanbul Since the 1980s”, Lecture delivered at LSE European Institute on Monday, 8 December 2008. 3 Serhan Ada and H. Ayça Ince, eds, Introduction to Cultural Policy In Turkey (Istanbul: Istanbul bilgi University Press, 2009),177. 6 Questions for further investigation: “How does the process of globalization foster the growth of the culture industry, and how does the growth of the culture industry foster globalization?” “How can the Istanbul Biennial, as a part of the culture industry, contribute to the development of the national political and economic climate?” “What role has the Istanbul Biennial played in representing the Turkish nation in the international arena?” “What are the real motivations prompting the private sector to support such cultural events?” “Can the Istanbul Biennial act as a catalyst to accelerate Turkey’s EU membership process?” The research methods employed in this study are based on archival exploration including the archives of the IKSV, data structuring, and interviews with the key agents directly involved: curators, gallery personnel, artists, and policy makers. Such data were collected from printed sources, primarily newspapers, art journals, gallery publications, catalogues, and the writings of artists, curators, and policy makers. This paper will begin by reviewing the discourse of globalization with a focus on the realm of “global city” and its interaction with culture industry, in order to shed light on the Istanbul Biennial, as a part of the culture industry which acts as a catalyst for remaking Istanbul as a global city. Subsequently, Cultural Policy of Turkey will be scrutinized within the context of the EU membership process, which has had a significant influence in boosting the culture industry in Istanbul via its frameworks such as the European Capital of Culture Program. In order to further understand the essentials and motivations that gave rise to a Biennial in Istanbul, the paper will depict the socio-political and economic situation prior to the Biennial. Accordingly, the evolution of the Biennial, starting in 1987 until the present, will be rehearsed by analyzing the artists, curators, conceptual frameworks and exhibition venues. The intention will be to illustrate the two-way interaction between the transformation of Istanbul into a global city and the organization of the Biennial. That is to say:

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