In Cihangir, two artist-run spaces — Kiralık Depo and Viable — are currently hosting exhibitions: Eline Tsvetkova’s A Capriccio and Zach Hodges’s Boya Temiz Titiz Yapılır. Istanbul’s cultural scene has been especially vibrant lately, and these two independent spaces, established by the neighborhood’s own artists, add to that energy. At Kiralık Depo, visitors can see Eline Tsvetkova’s A Capriccio, while at Viable, Zach Hodges presents Boya Temiz Titiz Yapılır.
Founded in 2021, these two venues have hosted more than thirty exhibitions to date and invite viewers into both local and international dialogue through the shows they organize together. Artist Defne Cemal explains the spaces and the exhibition process as follows:
“With these two exhibitions we opened on Saturday, September 20, we wanted to celebrate togetherness and the importance of cultural exchange. Eline Tsvetkova, one of the founders of YAYA/VIABLE.ISTANBUL, presents her new installation A Capriccio at Kiralık Depo, while Zach Hodges, one of the founders of Kiralık Depo, exhibits his new painting series Boya Temiz Titiz Yapılır at YAYA/VIABLE.ISTANBUL. Our opening reception took place in the back area of Kiralık Depo, which we envisioned as a shared space for both venues, featuring a temporary bar designed by Eline Tsvetkova and Doğu Akar.”
Located on Oba Street in Cihangir, Kiralık Depo is an artist-run independent exhibition space where big ideas and unique expressions come together in just 12 square meters. Operating since 2021, the venue prioritizes direct artist-to-artist interaction, embraces experimental processes, and hosts productions that bring perspectives from different geographies to Istanbul. Without any institutional support and existing entirely through self-sufficiency, Kiralık Depo stands as one of Istanbul’s most current examples of alternative art spaces.
A Capriccio at Kiralık Depo
The space is currently hosting Eline Tsvetkova’s solo exhibition A Capriccio. The title comes from an Italian musical term used to indicate a piece played “freely and playfully.”
At the center of the exhibition is the installation In Comfort of Others, consisting of a foldable bed, a wire mesh structure made from a carrier, old photographs placed inside, and a pharmacy cabinet. The work references a period in 1990s Bulgaria where Western aesthetics intertwined with local practices. Rooted in the artist’s childhood memories, this layered structure also evokes the erotic thrillers of the 1980s and 1990s she secretly watched during that time. The resulting imagery oscillates between a chaotic capitalist past and a socialist, utilitarian one.
Another work, BB in tempo rubato, is a video/sound installation. Here, the nearly 7,000 episodes of the soap opera The Bold and The Beautiful are re-timed to match the duration of the exhibition and shown on a single screen. The artist attempts to reclaim the “stolen time” her grandmother spent watching the series; an accompanying text reflects on her grandmother’s fascination with the show, intertwining it with her life story and relationship with time.
The final piece, with a kiss on top, is a collage combining a handwritten note accompanying a military training photo of the artist’s grandfather in a field of flowers with a recipe snippet printed on an old cloth. The phrase “with a kiss on top” becomes the tender final touch of this personal narrative.
Boya Temiz Titiz Yapılır at Viable
Viable aims to build a flexible, artist-centered exhibition model outside of traditional gallery structures. It organizes shows that adapt to different locations and needs while creating an alternative funding system to ensure sustainability and transparency. YAYA, located in the İttihad Sigorta Passage in Cihangir, serves as Viable’s permanent art display. Situated right at the entrance of the passage, this small vitrine operates as a public exhibition space viewable throughout the day.
Currently on view at the Viable vitrine is Zach Hodges’s Boya Temiz Titiz Yapılır, a series of recent paintings drawing from scenes of everyday life in Istanbul: a TV in the corner of a grocery store (Birds on TV), the dented fender of a parked car (Car), or the reflection in a shop window (Reflection III).
Though sharing a common source, the paintings vary widely in size, technique, and impression. Some are meticulously worked, while others dissolve almost into indistinct masses of pigment. Certain elements emerge as natural extensions of the production process, while others result from unexpected experiments or improvisational moments.
The exhibition’s title comes from a handwritten sign often seen on Istanbul streets advertising house painting: “Boya temiz titiz yapılır” (“Painting done clean and meticulously”). The sign’s sketch-like appearance and corrections suggest an interpretive lens for Hodges’s paintings.
Both exhibitions can be viewed until October 18.
