Ancient Turkish bathhouse to host art exhibition

From Sept. 15 to Oct. 13, the oldest Ottoman Turkish bath of Istanbul, Küçük Mustafa Pasha Hamami (1477), will host “Water. Like Tears of Love,” the site-specific installation by Roman artist Angelo Bucarelli, curated by Laura Barreca. It is the main event of the Italian cultural program in Istanbul, as Italian Ambassador in Turkey, Gianpaolo Scarante said at the presentation of “Orizzonti Italiani.”

The installation is organized as a parallel event of the 13th Istanbul Biennial and it is part of the Meating – Italian Excellences program.

The title “Water. Like Tears of Love” is freely inspired by a verse written by Tursun Bey, Ottoman historian and poet at the court of Mehmet II, also called Fatih, in which he shows his emotion in front of the abundance of water and gardens in the newly conquered Constantinople.

Continuing his research on the concepts of identity and words as the basis for human beings’ fundamental needs to relate to their peers, Bucarelli discovered in water the essence of Byzantium / Constantinople / Istanbul’s identity and chose it as the focus of his artistic intervention.

“Water is the existence and the essence of Istanbul. From the water and through it, it was born. It gave the power, lost and then regained. Through the water Istanbul fed on other civilizations repaying them with its intelligence and beauties. In its lack of water within the walls, it found genius and development. As thought the water seeps and springs, escapes and disappears. It gives growth and death. Like the tears of love it joins together and separates,” the artist says.


/HurriyetDailynews.Com/