This June, Istanbul Modern hosts Landscapes of the Mind, a solo exhibition by Ali Kazma. The exhibition presents a comprehensive selection of the artist’s video and photographic works that document spaces dedicated to literary and writing cultures. Opening on June 13, Landscapes of the Mind brings together works produced in various geographies, focusing on books, libraries, literature, and writing—an area Kazma has explored since the 2010s.
Curated by Öykü Özsoy Sağnak and Demet Yıldız Dinçer, with Yazın Öztürk as assistant curator, the exhibition includes the premiere of Sumi (2025), a video work documenting a 400-year-old traditional ink-making process in Nara, Japan.
Among the works being shown in Turkey for the first time are Mürekkep Evi (2022) and Sentimental (2022), which focus on writer Orhan Pamuk’s personal archive and living space, and Alberto in Lisbon (2024), which follows the relocation of Argentine author and book historian Alberto Manguel’s library from France to Portugal.
Landscapes of the Mind also features Kazma’s works Hat (2013) and Tattoo (2013), previously exhibited at the Pavilion of Turkey at the 55th Venice Biennale. The exhibition includes photographs documenting restricted-access libraries, printing presses, papermakers, bookbinders, restoration studios, and bookstores—offering an inventory of literary production from past to present.
Visit Details
• Dates: June 13 – February 1
• Venue: Istanbul Modern
• Entry Information: Istanbul Modern
About the Artist – Ali Kazma
Lens-based media artist Ali Kazma represented Turkey at the 55th Venice Biennale in 2013. His solo exhibitions have been presented at Jeu de Paume (Paris, 2017), Nouveau Musée National de Monaco (2023), Albergo Diurno Venezia (Milan, 2018), MUNTREF (Buenos Aires, 2018), Arter (Istanbul, 2015), and the Hirshhorn Museum (Washington, D.C., 2010).
Currently based in Paris, Kazma has participated in major international biennials and group exhibitions, including the 6th Kuandu Biennale (Taipei, 2018), 7th Moscow Biennale of Contemporary Art (2017), MAXXI (Rome, 2016), Lyon Museum of Contemporary Art (2013), 30th São Paulo Biennial (2012), and several editions of the Istanbul Biennial (2001, 2007, 2011). His works have been shown at Muzeum Sztuki Łódź (2012), Istanbul Modern (2011), Museum Kunstpalast (Düsseldorf, 2010), and the New Museum (New York, 2010).
Kazma’s works are held in international and institutional collections including Tate Modern (London), Fondation Cartier (Paris), CNAP (Paris), MEP (Paris), MONA (Hobart), TBA21 (Vienna), and Istanbul Modern. He was awarded the UNESCO Prize for the Promotion of the Arts in 2001 and the Nam June Paik International Media Art Award in 2010.
