Salt's new exhibition "The 90s on Stage" brings together art productions from the 1990s in Türkiye with a focus on the stage and performance concepts.
Examining the relationship between performance and society, economy, the streets and politics, the exhibition presents a potpourri of cultural history while shining a light on individual and collective initiatives created by artists and designers. "The 90s Onstage" is based on archives gathered from various sources and includes a variety of stunning productions ranging from live performances to video clips.
The 1990s were a time when rapid social changes were experienced in Türkiye.
During these years, dynamism was witnessed in the popular culture, art and entertainment scene in Istanbul that contrasted with the turbulent atmosphere of the period. With the influence of private radio and television channels that opened one after the other, pop culture was on an unprecedented rise. The 1990s was also a period when the "interdisciplinary" concept came to the fore in Türkiye's art scene. Performance art started to nurture different disciplines, opening up an innovative and experimental field of expression for many artists in these years.
The exhibition aims to bring a multifaceted view to the history of culture, art and entertainment by concentrating on the performance productions of the period on stage. It establishes unexpected connections between popular culture and performance art examples, whose visibility increased in parks, entertainment venues, historical areas and abandoned buildings during this period, and points out how broadly the concept of "stage" can be addressed.
The exhibition started as part of the "Beyoğlu Culture Road Festival," the Ministry of Culture and Tourism's Culture Road project to revive cultural heritage all over Türkiye.
Stating that access to information, culture and art is an essential element of social development during the preview and press conference of the exhibition, Salt Deputy Chairperson of the Board and Garanti BBVA Deputy General Manager Işıl Akdemir Evlioğlu said: “Garanti BBVA has been working in this direction for a very long time. Salt is a very valuable institution that reflects exactly this approach. We are proud to be the founder and permanent supporter of Salt.”
Salt General Manager Deniz Ova thanked the Salt team, artists and institutions that contributed to the exhibition and said: “We are not alone in Salt's journey, and thanks to our founder Garanti BBVA for the opportunities provided to contribute to Türkiye's cultural and artistic environment, society and knowledge production. ”
The exhibition can be visited free of charge in Salt's Beyoğlu and Galata buildings until Feb. 12. The museum's website also contains a comprehensive archive study of the performances realized in that period, which is available for public access.
