Terra Incognita

Contemporary Istanbul Foundation is pleased to enter its third year in line with its principles of sustainability, responsible use of resources, shaped by three pillars: research, application, and sharing, with Terra Incognita, the first of an exhibition series concentrating on issues of ecological balance and sustainability.

The extinction of animal and plant species, rapid climate change, and unsustainable use of resources are bringing our planet closer to what is called the sixth mass extinction. Although there are many individual actions that can be taken to reduce the effects of global climate change, public awareness about the issue remains to be insufficient. Terra Incognita (Latin for “Undiscovered Territories") concentrates on the metaphorical interpretation of trees to explore the unknown, yet necessary measures to deal with climate change.

Trees have appeared as ideological, architectural, genealogical, and ethical metaphors in all kinds of narratives about the Earth from ancient times to our present day, but they are more than mere imagery and perceptual layers - they are crucial agents of sustainability for human life and take on a central role in ecological balance. Their unique sociability deriving from mycorrhizal networks and their function as a social shelter for people in the public space, are among the many indicators of the scope of our relationship with them as two different living organisms. Trees open up space for uninterrupted movement of people and form various additional layers as their borders expand, and have appeared as protagonists in the struggle for democracy, linking life and freedom, as expressed in Nazım Hikmet’s verses.

Trees, which are frequently part of our modern struggle for life, are also the harbingers of their own extinction. Terra Incognita, which aims to draw attention to the “Plant for Life” project carried out by the Yves Rocher Foundation with the mission of making afforestation widespread for many years, reveals the works of 11 striking and provocative contemporary artists, which is sometimes in the form of debris scattered across the exhibition space, or the disruption of darkness through a loud noise or moving imagery, hopes to create awareness through these artworks.

Ayça Okay Curator