Cultural Collaboration Projects Winter-Spring 2025 - Türkiye

Cultural Collaboration Projects Winter-Spring 2025

News item | 12-05-2025 | 10:36

From Classical Music Concerts, to insightful documentary film screenings, exhibitions and children’s theatre performances, the year started brightly and brought Dutch talent to all corners of Türkiye.

MUSIC: Classical ensembles Olten Philarmonic Orchestra started things off with workshops, a masterclass by Jurjen Hempel and a concert on the 15^th of January in Izmir. At the same time, Trio Emerant performed classical concerts in Ankara, Istanbul and Izmir (11^th - 17^th Jan) and gave a wonderful masterclass and workshop in Eskisehir. In March, Dutch guitarist Thomas Hillbrandie paid homage to Eric Sate with concerts and masterclasses at the St Benoit Fransiz Lisesi, Istanbul.

DOCUMENTARIES: In the cold dark winter months, we crept inside to enjoy 'Cinema Ecologica' film screenings in cooperation with Eye Films Archive and Akbank Sanat. Four respected Dutch documentary films focusing on various poignant social and environmental themes, were shown each Tuesday between February 11^th and March 4^th.

Our second batch of documentary collaborations saw IFSAK short film festival and Kundura DocLab bring several thought-provoking Dutch films to Turkish movie screens, including 'The Propogandist', 'The Jacket', 'All is Well' and 'Writing Hawa' from the IDFA (International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam) catalogue.

CULTURAL HERITAGE: From 28^th of February to 28^th March we took the Phrygian Highlands 1937-1958 photography exhibition of Dutch born classical archeologist Emilie Haspels (1894-1980) to the Eti Archaeology Museum in Eskisehir.

CULTURAL FORUMS AND EXHIBITIONS: Spring 2025 also saw us continue our relationship with SALT through two fascinating projects. The first 'Water Assemblies Forum', comprises five research strands that explore water in relation to geographies, infrastructures, language, and imagination, started in early March with an exhibition, talks and workshops in Istanbul. Later this spring and summer this forum will continue in Ankara. Our second SALT collaboration, 'Lives of Animals', explores the evolving relationship between humans and animals throughout history-from coexistence to systems of domination. This exhibition began on the 15^th of March and will run through until August.

FILM: In March, the Istanbul Film Festival and Meetings on the Bridge, continued to showcase extraordinary global movie talent with Dutch films 'Mr K' and 'Alpha' being screened and actor Reinout Scholten van Asschat (Alpha) traveling to Istanbul for the event and an enjoyable Q&A with the enthusiastic public.

THEATRE: Our continued dedication to providing access to Dutch culture to children from all socio-economic backgrounds continued with Sivas Children's Theatre taking their interpretation of Dutch Author Karina Schaapman's 'Mouse Mansion' to several locations throughout eastern and southern Turkiye from April onwards.

PHOTOGRAPHY: As the days grew longer and brighter, Dutch photographer Lard Buurman came to Istanbul in April for an extended program of workshops, seminars, lectures and a public talk in collaboration with AURA Istanbul and MSGSU Dept. of Photography & Dept. of Architecture.

FESTIVALS: The warmer months signal the start of the music festival season. In Ankara, Orochi Ensemble performed at the International Ankara Music Festival whilst Dutch musicians Han Bennink and Joris Roelofs gave concerts and masterclasses at the Show of Hands Festival in Istanbul.

For a selection of event and artist links please see below.