ART WORLD / WORLD ART NO:5 MARCH 2010 1 EDITOR’S INTRODUCTION MARCH 2010 RES RES Art World / World Art was launched in September 2007 in Istanbul with the objective of casting a glance at contemporary art from a fresh, broad and critical perspective, with contributions from leading writers, artists, curators and art professionals. Published biannually by Dirimart, RES champions an integrated -even eclectic approach- arguing that we should develop a view of the contemporary art agenda that encompasses everyone, every form and format. Including interviews, essays, exhibition and book reviews, and with a special emphasis on (neglected) art scenes in neighboring countries, RES is a non-commercial publication from Istanbul that, we hope, opens the doors to a versatile set of sounds, colors and dimensions. The fifth issue of RES brings with it a slight change of air; Duygu Demir recently joined RES as Managing Editor, and November Paynter has already contributed immensely to the magazine with her presence on the Editorial Board. And in the near future, the rejuvenation of RES will be furthered with guest editors. RES 5 features an inspiring set of texts and images, including an interview with the 2009 Turner Prize winner Richard Wright, a conversation between the artist Yüksel Arslan and Hans Ulrich Obrist, a look at contemporary art in Romania with a focus on Cluj and Bucharest, in addition to the first art commission for RES that we are very excited about -a drawing made specially for this issue by Ciprian Mureşan. RES 5 also includes an overview of art world prizes including two of the closest to home - the Abraaj Capital Art Prize and the Deste Prize, as well as the Hugo Boss Prize in New York, along with many more articles, interviews, exhibition and book reviews. You can subscribe for the hard-copy or access the pdf version of the current and previous issues of RES by visiting our website at www.resartworld.com. We also look forward to receiving your feedback. We hope you enjoy the read. RES 3 HANS ULRICH OBRIST IN CONVERSATION MARCH 2010 HUO Has music always played an important role in your works? RES WITH YÜKSEL ARSLAN YA Yes, there are many musicians, there are always musicians… I can give you my other books. HUO Are there other published books? YA Yes, I have published books. I love books very much. Every time I work on a series, I make a book of the INTERVIEW IN FRENCH. TRANSLATED BY YASEM‹N BASKI DUMAN AND BERRAK CÖMERT series and publish it before the exhibition. HANS ULRICH OBRIST I worked at Paris Modern Arts Museum for ten years but we HUO Were you born in İstanbul? never met. When did you begin working? When did your art begin? When was the beginning, was there an epiphany? Did it begin in the family? YA Yes, yes. In İstanbul, very close to the museum [santralistanbul]. YÜKSEL ARSLAN The beginning, my first exhibition was in 1955 at Galeri Maya, HUO Yes. (laughs) What brought you to Paris? İstanbul. It was 55 years ago. There were drawings similar to this (pointing to his notebook). I still have the notebooks. All my notebooks are in İstanbul, at the YA I was invited by André Breton, the Surrealist. The pope of Surrealists. museum [santralistanbul]. Great notebooks…Here, they are. For example, currently I am working on Janácek. I read books and take notes. After reading books, I take HUO Did he invite you? notes here (pointing to the notebook). Afterwards, I can see how I am going to work, how I can do this; an arture. I look at this [notebook] and draw here. Afterwards, I YA Yes, he invited me in 1959 to converse. How do you say… After the Raymond Cordier Gallery. Here they start working. are (brings the books). Yes, I was invited by André Breton. HUO What made you work on Janácek? HUO How did Breton get to know you? YA I love music and musicians very much. Because they have very powerful ideas. YA We had not met. In 1959, I met an American poet, Edouard Roditi in a small square in İstanbul. For example, Janácek says “When someone speaks with me, I have music.” The Edouard Roditi was American but his parents were of Turkish origin. His parents; his father immigrated melody of speaking. You have your way of speaking. Everyone does. When Janácek to the U.S.A. Roditi had a cousin in İstanbul; Tilda Roditi. Tilda Kemal was the wife of the Turkish novelist hears you speak, he creates the music of your voice. Your way of speaking, the Yaşar Kemal. Roditi was in İstanbul to see his cousin in 1959. He saw my works at my professor’s place, melody of your language, it is very interesting. at İpşiroğlu’s place. HUO What is the relationship between you and the objects around you? There is HUO Were they drawings like this? blood on one side and there is Janácek. You are surrounded by so many objects. It is like a museum here. It is fabulous. YA He asked: “Where can I meet Mr. Arslan?” Then he went to a restaurant and he found me. Later, Roditi went to Paris and he met Breton there. At the time, André Breton was preparing an international YA Yes, if you look around, you will see there are mostly musical instruments. This exhibition on Surrealism. And the subject was erotism. (laughs) So Breton asked Roditi if he had met any is an African harp. This is sanza, the African piano. They invented it. This is like a painters that could be of interest to them - because Roditi traveled a lot. Erotic painters… Roditi told him music room. about me, two German painters and one Dutch painter. So I got an invitation from Roditi while he was in İstanbul, at the Bosphorus (laughs). HUO These are wind instruments? HUO Did you go to Paris to see the exhibition? Did you see the Surrealist exhibition? YA Yes, there are many wind instruments. Oboe, wind instruments and some masks… Do you remember, this is like that Indian film. The film “Music Room?” It was a work of art. YA I could not participate in that exhibition. Because in 1959, it was not possible to leave Turkey. I could not even find a way to send two paintings to Paris. But in 1960 there was a military coup in Turkey. They HUO Was that your inspiration? came into power. Later, it was possible to obtain a passport for 200 dollars and leave the country. Roditi also sent to me an American collector, Mark Moyens. Mark Moyens bought four or five paintings of mine RES YA Yes, here, it is like a music room. Studio of the artist, like a music room. in İstanbul. On his way to the U.S.A. he stopped in Paris and showed these paintings at the Raymond MARCH 2010 2 5 MARCH 2010 YA No, my influence was mostly related to what I saw in Turkey. For example, the shadow theater with RES the figure of Karagöz. There are curtains and on the curtains there are small figures of men. Shadow theater, Karagöz… It is said that this originally comes from China. This had an important influence over me. And miniatures… Because one says, since Turkey is an Islamic country, there are no paintings. It is ridiculous. Why wouldn’t there be paintings? When you go to the library at the Topkapı Palace, if you have the authorization, you can find manuscripts from the 15th century. You open them and see that there are miniatures. What are miniatures? They don’t have to paint the same sort of painting as they do in Paris, London or Berlin. They can paint differently. So, I had the idea to be influenced by what was in Turkey, in İstanbul. As I said before, the figure of shadow theater, Karagöz, miniatures, etc,. HUO There was also the theater of Bertolt Brecht, Bataille, literature and theater. Because your book had Brecht in it. Arture 428, İnsan 69: Şizofreniler, toplayıcılar [Arture 428, Human 69: Schizophrenics, collectors ] YA Yes, Bertholt Brecht for example. I think he is one of the greatest poets of the 20th century. As one says, 1991 he was a great mind. 35 x 43 cm Courtesy santralistanbul HUO What was it about Brecht that influenced you? Cordier Gallery in Paris. Among these paintings there was a portrait of Marquis de Sade. Cordier bought that portrait and showed it to André Breton. André Breton said: “We invited this gentleman to our YA I can say mostly his writings and poems. It is said that he is a great poet as well. They think of him as a exhibition but he did not participate, he did not send any paintings.” So in 1961, I got my passport and man of theater. But, in fact he is a great writer and a poet. This influenced me along with his ideas. went to the Gallery Raymond Cordier, in Paris. HUO In poetry there was also Lorca. HUO I am very interested in your movements. Your phallicism movement. Is there a phallicism manifesto? YA Yes, Lorca, of course. YA When I was young, I used the signature “Comte de Phallus” (Count of Phallus) in my paintings HUO What was it about Lorca that influenced you? (laughs). I sent a letter to André Breton explaining to him why I could not send any paintings to Paris in 1959. The letter was also signed as “Comte de Phallus.” We found this letter later on the internet YA His poems, of course.