9th Çanakkale Biennial – “Let Time Run its Course”

With the title “Let Time Run its Course,” the 9th Çanakkale Biennial, hosted in 13 different venues and showcasing over 50 artists, opened its doors on October 4. Taking place from October 4 to November 11 this year, the biennial adopts an approach that prioritizes inclusivity, interaction, and dialogue.

The 9th Çanakkale Biennial’s general artistic directorship is taken up by Seyhan Boztepe, founder of CABININ – Çanakkale Biennial Initiative, with the guidance from the Biennial Board, which has shaped the event through its suggestions and contributions, includes Alper Akyüz, Burak Topçakıl, Deniz Erbaş, Didem Çapa, Ebru Nalan Sülün, Hakan Yılmaz, Rüstem Aslan, Thouli Misirloglou, Ulrika Flink, and Zihni Tümer. Accompanying the main exhibitions, which will be held over six weeks at various locations, is a packed schedule of events and collaborations spread throughout the city. For the first time in its history, the biennial extends its reach to the art and cultural initiatives of areas like Assos and Küçükkuyu, alongside its usual venues in the city centre’s historical and cultural sites, as well as the Troy Museum and its surroundings.

“Let Time Run its Course” – A Multidimensional Moment

According to the conceptual text of the biennial, the title “Let Time Run its Course” refers both to the primary meaning of the phrase and its connotations: “It suggests entrusting seemingly unsolvable situations—those that require urgent attention but appear intractable under current conditions—to the healing effect of time. It advocates for a calm approach rather than the haste implied by urgency. On one hand, it addresses the excitement, vitality, and high energy typically associated with ‘youth,’ while on the other, it proposes experiencing and perceiving the ‘moments’ of nature and humanity from a broader perspective, especially in contrast to the pressures of speed and simultaneity imposed by contemporary technologies.”

The 9th Çanakkale Biennial opens this theme up for discussion and practise through three key axes. The first is Youth Culture and Art-Technology Connections; the second, Fresh Approaches to Global Issues, addresses “current global concerns affecting youth today, such as the ‘future of professions,’ ‘environmental sustainability,’ and ‘mobility’.” Finally, the third axis is Art in the Transmission of Culture. The 9th Çanakkale Biennial also embodies the desire to “entrust and pass on to the future” nearly two decades of accumulated artistic production, institutional model development, strategy, and memory by letting it be carried forward in time.

Artists and Main Exhibition Venues

The Troy Museum, MAHAL Art Habitat, Stüdyo Mahal, FEHAN Upstairs Korfmann Library, Bordo Bina, and ASTIM Collective is to host the exhibitions within the frame of the 9th Çanakkale Biennial, which presents a broad artist profile spanning generations and geographies: Ahmet Yiğider, Akın Güreş, Alper Aydın, Ani Çelik Arevyan, Ataman Girişken, ATI SUFFIX, Ayşen Urfalıoğlu, Aytuğ Aykut, Berkin Gülten, Berkin Günsay, Bilal Yılmaz, Cem Sonel, Damla Sari, David Blandy, Deniz Kulaksızoğlu & Can Yıldırım, Ecem Dilan Köse, Eda Sütunç, Edith Roux, Erdal Duman, Eric Magassa, Esra Carus, Fatih Kızılcan, Fırat Engin, Füreya Koral, Gönül Nuhoğlu, Güçlü Polat, Hakan Yılmaz, Halit Demirel, Jane Jin Kaisen, Johannes Vogl, Jun’ichiro Ishii, Kaan Tanhan, Kerem Meriç, Madlen Hirtentreu, Murat Cem Baytok, Mustafa Akkaya, Nejat Birecik, Ömür Tokgöz, Rabia Seyhan, Serhat Kiraz & Hakan Gündüz, Seyhun Topuz, Süleyman Yılmaz, Tunç Ali Çam, Vasilis Alexandrou, Vince Briffa, Volkan Babaotu, Yabancı, Yunus Aras.

For the detailed event program, please visit the website.

Supporters of the 9th Çanakkale Biennial:

Main Supporter: DARDANEL
Venue Supporters: Ministry of Culture and Tourism of Turkey, Troy Museum, Çanakkale Provincial Directorate of Culture and Tourism, Troia Tübingen Foundation, Çanakkale History and Culture Foundation / ÇATKAV, Güneşane Foundation, Adatepe Olive Oil Museum, Adatepe İda Blue Hotel, Ceyda-Rıdvan Demirhan
Institutional Supporter: KALE KTSM
Co-Supporters: Trendyol Art, Datassist
Contributing Institutions: British Council, Spaces of Culture, SAHA Association, Italian Cultural Institute, Goethe-Institut, French Cultural Institute, Danish Cultural Institute, Estonian Embassy in Ankara, CerModern, Maçka Art Gallery, Klasik Keyifler Association and EV Siemens Music Foundation, Thessaloniki Biennial and MOMus, İBA, Anna Laudel Gallery, Çukurova Contemporary Foundation, İyi Bak Association, Barınhan
With Contributions From: Çanakkale Municipality, Çanakkale Onsekiz Mart University Faculty of Fine Arts and Faculty of Performing Arts
Media Partner: ArtDog Istanbul
Solution Partners: Samsung, Faselis, Merdiven Art Space, ABG Ent., Visio-vox, Foto Kitap, ARC
Online Art Partner: ARTtv
Hospitality Partners: Hotel Akol, Anzac Hotels, Büyük Truva Hotel, Yalova Restaurant, Wilusa Tour, Lodos, The Abies Hotel, Truva Gourmet, Gökçe Meşrubat

Cover Image: ASTIM Collective