İpek Çınar

Sanat, Güç ve Müzakere Arasında: Katılımcı Sanatta Terazinin Kantarını Aramak -eng below- Sanatçı ve araştırmacı İpek Çınar, katılımcı sanat üzerine kaleme aldığı bu metinde hem bu üretim biçiminin temel karakterini inceliyor hem de bu pratiğin güç, etik ve temsil meseleleriyle sürekli sınanan bir zemin olduğunu hatırlatıyor. Fiziksel sonuçlardan ziyade süreç boyunca kurulan ilişkiler, güven ve kolektif deneyimlerle değer kazanan bu alanda, sanatçının konumu da sorgulamaya açılıyor: Gerçekten “yalnızca bir ölçü” mü, yoksa terazinin kantarını hâlâ o mu tutuyor? Katılımcılık eşitlik vaadi mi taşıyor, yoksa mevcut güç ilişkilerini yeniden üretme riskini mi barındırıyor? Çınar, bu gerilimlerin de altını çizerek, sanat ile politika arasındaki kırılgan müzakere alanını görünür kılıyor. Metni SAHA websitesinden okuyabilirsiniz. Orta Format websitesi yeni versiyonu ile yapım aşamasında. Arşivimize ise hala ortaformat.org’dan erişebilirsiniz. “Güncel Sanatta Kavramlarla Düşünmek” SAHA Yazı Dizisi kapsamında desteklenmiştir. #katılımcısanat #ipekçınar ... Between Art, Power, and Negotiation: In Search of the Scale’s Counterweight in Participatory Art In this text on participatory art, İpek Çınar explores the core characteristics of this mode of practice while reminding us that it is a field continually shaped and challenged by questions of power, ethics, and representation. In a context where value lies less in tangible outcomes than in the relationships, trust, and collective experiences built over time, the role of the artist itself comes under scrutiny: Is the artist truly “just one measure,” or do they still hold the balance? Does participation genuinely promise equality, or does it risk reproducing existing power structures? By dwelling on these tensions, Çınar reveals the fragile space of negotiation between art and politics. You can read the article on the SAHA website. The Orta Format website is currently under construction with a new version. However, you can still access our archive at ortaformat.org. “Thinking with Concepts in Contemporary Art” has been supported as part of the SAHA Writing Series / Supported by SAHA Art Writing.

🔩 Our next Fantastic Wednesday is coming on March 4 at 6pm, with İpek Çınar. 🔩 We’ll meet at the PhD-in-Practice Studio (Room 201) at the Akademie (Schillerplatz 3, 1010 Wien). Join us! During the evening, İpek Çınar shares glimpses from her ongoing research into educational justice, participation, adaptation, and the many frictions that accompany collective effort. Grounded in her engagement with Orta Okul (@ortaokulinitiative ), a nomadic art education platform, the presentation draws on experiences shaped through facilitation, negotiation, and long term collaboration. Moving between displacement, dialogue, exhaustion, and the slow temporalities of working together, the evening opens with an informal viewing of selected materials exhibited through the logic of Orta Okul. Images, stories, and infrastructural components will be temporarily assembled in the studio. Over the course of the evening, the installation will be rearranged to make space for a reading from an evolving text that reflects on the process. With contributions by Ece Gökalp, Burçin Tetik, and the women of the Berlin Turkey Women’s Association, and with the support of Aykan Safoglu during the event. The main language of the event is English. Most reading materials will be in Turkish and German. We recommend that the audience bring a translation application with a photo translation function. … İpek Çınar (she/her) is a cultural practitioner working predominantly with participatory art practices that explore collective learning, facilitation, and shared authorship. She uses play, joy, and unexpected encounters as means of expression in her socially engaged works. She loves the word “Orta” (Middle). She has been co-editor of Orta Format since 2015, alongside Şener Soysal and Eda Yiğit, and is a proud co-founder of Orta Okul together with Ece Gökalp.

It was a weird month, my friends.

-tr- 💌 Biriktirdiklerimiz 💌 8 Oturumluk Seminer – Türkçe konuşan FLINTA sanatçı ve kültür üreticileri için* İpek Çınar & Ece Gökalp Orta Okul & Artist Training işbirliği Biriktirdiklerimiz, Berlin’de kültür–sanat alanında yolunu arayan Türkiye kökenli FLINTA* sanatçı ve kültür emekçilerini bir araya getirmeyi amaçlıyor. Seminer, göç süreci ya da toplumsal cinsiyet temelli sebeplerle üretimi kesintiye uğramış erken ve orta kariyer sanatçı, akademisyen ve kültür çalışanlarına yöneliktir. Katılımcıların ihtiyaçlarını ifade edebilecekleri ve karşılaştıkları zorluklara birlikte çözüm üretebilecekleri bir alan yaratmayı hedefliyoruz. Oturumlar UdK’da ve Berlin’in farklı sanat/topluluk mekânlarında gerçekleşecek; müfredat katılımcılarla birlikte şekillenecek ve Berlin’de sanatsal, hukuksal ve bürokratik varoluş stratejilerine odaklanacaktır. Sanat alanında var olmanın koşulu olarak İngilizce ya da baskın dili konuşma gerekliliğini yıkmak için seminerin ana dili Türkçedir. Başvuru: [email protected] Bu güzel görseller @ma.hgol ’den 💛 -eng- What We Carry 8-Session Seminar – for Turkish-speaking FLINTA artists and cultural practitioners* İpek Çınar & Ece Gökalp In collaboration with Orta Okul & Artist Training What We Carry aims to bring together and support FLINTA* artists and cultural workers from Turkey who are navigating the arts and culture field in Berlin. The seminar is intended for early- and mid-career artists, academics, and cultural practitioners whose creative work has been interrupted by migration or gender-related challenges. The program seeks to create a space where participants can express their needs and collectively develop responses. Sessions will take place at UdK and various art and community venues across Berlin; the curriculum will be co-created with participants and will focus on artistic, legal, and bureaucratic strategies for sustaining a practice in Berlin. To challenge the assumption that one must speak English or the dominant national language to belong in the arts, the seminar’s main working language is Turkish. Application via [email protected]. Beautiful visuals by @ma.hgol 💛

Happy to share the third text from our Acts of Conflations exhibition catalogue. If you’d like to hear about future publications, you’re welcome to join our newsletter and follow us here. Link in bio In this piece, Ipek Çınar, co-founder of Orta Okul, gently walks us through the three principles that guide their work: art with the community, maintenance over development, and participants before curriculum. She reflects on how these ideas shape a practice grounded in co-creation, care, and learning together—challenging the usual models of art education and opening space for something more inclusive, flexible, and fair. 📷 1. Orta Okul, This Is Not A Curriculum, 2025, exhibition Acts of Conflactions, Galerie AC. Art & Dialogue, Berlin 2025, courtesy of Sumac Space 📷 3. From إطار مفتوح program, with unaccompanied refugee children, facilitated by Mohamed Badarne, photographed by Orta Okul 📷 4. From 50 Jahre Türkischer Frauenverein Berlin: Frauenpower, Brücken bauen und Wandel inspirieren exhibition, curated and photographed by Orta Okul 📷 5. From Movement Workshop: Şiirden Dansa, with women speaking Turkish, facilitated by Gizem Aksu, photographed by Orta Okul #SumacSpace #SumacDialogues #ExhibitionCatalogue #CommunityArtPractice #ArtEducation

𝗧𝘂̈𝗿𝗸𝗶𝘀𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗙𝗿𝗮𝘂𝗲𝗻𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗶𝗻 𝗕𝗲𝗿𝗹𝗶𝗻: 𝟱𝟬 𝗝𝗮̈𝗵𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗲 𝗦𝗰𝗵𝘂𝗹𝗲 𝗱𝗲𝘀 𝗳𝗲𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗶𝘀𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗞𝗮𝗺𝗽𝗳𝗲𝘀 𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗦𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗱𝗮𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗮̈𝘁 𝟰. 𝗗𝗲𝘇𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟱, 𝟭𝟳:𝟬𝟬 𝗙𝗛𝗫𝗕 𝗠𝘂𝘀𝗲𝘂𝗺 𝘛𝘶̈𝘳𝘬𝘤̧𝘦 𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘪𝘯 𝘪𝘤̧𝘪𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘳𝘶𝘮𝘭𝘢𝘳𝘢 𝘣𝘢𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘻. Nach zweijähriger Arbeit freuen wir uns, die Veröffentlichung der digitalen Publikation „Türkischer Frauenverein Berlin: 50 Jährige Schule des feministischen Kampfes und der Solidarität“ bekannt zu geben, die aus dem Archiv des Berliner Türkischen Frauenvereins hervorgegangen ist. Der über ein halbes Jahrhundert andauernde feministische Kampf und die solidarischen Erfahrungen des Berliner Türkischen Frauenvereins werden nun durch ein digitales Archiv einer breiten Öffentlichkeit zugänglich gemacht. Dieses Projekt zielt darauf ab, die Widerstandskraft, die Organisationspraktiken und die Entschlossenheit der Frauen auf ihrem Weg zur Gleichberechtigung sichtbar zu machen – gespeist aus den historischen Erfahrungen des Vereins. Die Publikation dokumentiert diese über die Zeit gewachsene kollektive Arbeit und bietet gleichzeitig eine Inspirationsquelle für die heutige feministische Bewegung. Projektkoordinatorinnen: İpek Çınar und Ece Gökalp (@ortaokulinitiative ) Gestaltung: Salih Gürkan Çakar @sgurkancakar Wir danken herzlich den Mitarbeiterinnen und dem Vorstand des Berliner Türkischen Frauenvereins, die maßgeblich zur Erstellung dieser Publikation beigetragen haben; Güney Tekin, Mayıs Toker, Bilge Emine Arslan und Gizem Aksu, die im Rahmen kreativer Workshops während des Projekts mit dem Verein zusammenkamen; Burçin Tetik für die Geschichte, die im Anschluss an die Oral-History-Arbeit entstand; Atacan Ak und Emrah Erdoğan für die Erstellung der Videozeugnisse sowie Salih Gürkan Çakar, der das Design dieser Publikation übernommen hat, die das Ergebnis unserer zweijährigen Arbeit ist. Diese Publikation wurde mit Unterstützung der Bundeszentrale für politische Bildung erstellt. Die in der Publikation enthaltenen Zeugnisse sowie die Geschichten Eine Nebensache und Wasserwunde wurden durch die IMPACT-Förderung unterstützt.

Last three days to visit Acts of Conflations! On the occasion of Berlin Art Week, @galerieamelieconrad and @sumacspace present the exhibition Acts of Conflations, bringing together eight artists and two collectives selected from last year’s Sumac Open Call, where invited artists, curators, and research groups engaging with contemporary socio-political urgencies in West Asia to submit their works and projects. As part of the exhibition, we prepared an installation titled This is not a Curriculum. It brings together handmade letters containing information on educational injustices in Berlin, a personal letter reflecting one individual’s experience with education, and another letter from Orta Okul. During the exhibition, visitors are invited to take a letter home with them, carrying a small trace of us with them. Alongside the letters, you can also glimpse a video depicting our nomadic structure and highlights from our previous works. Don’t miss the final three days—visit the exhibition and take a letter from us! Artists in the exhibition: Agil Abdullayev (Frankfurt), Hüseyin Aksoy (Istanbul), Reyhaneh Mirjahani (Stockholm), Yasmin Noorbakhsh (London), Saayeh Sayyah (Tehran), Helena Tahir (Ljubljana), Yaqeen Yamani (Jericho, Palestine), Abbas Zahedi (London). Collectives: Orta Okul and ZînKolektif. Installation shots by Ece Gökalp.

-tr- 50 SENE, 10 METRE Geçtiğimiz hafta ikinci oturumunu @spore.initiative ‘de gerçekleştirdiğimiz 50 Sene, 10 Metre workshop serisine gelen herkese teşekkürler! Bu atölyede, Türkiyeli göçmen kadınların* hayatlarını kendi bakış açılarından dinlemeyi ve kişisel deneyimlerini birbirine bağlayan kolektif bir kolaj oluşturmayı amaçlıyoruz. 10 metre uzunluğundaki bir tuvali fotoğraflar, nakışlar, metinler, çizimler ve anılarla birlikte tasarlıyor ve birlikte hayata geçiriyoruz. Bir sonraki seans 15 Ağustos’ta, Türkiye Kadınlar Birliği’nde çok uzun yıllar boyunca dikiş nakış kursu vermiş olan Serpil Aksöz eşliğinde gerçekleşecek. Katılmak isteyenler [email protected] adresine e-posta ile haber verebilir. -de- 50 JAHRE, 10 METER Vielen Dank an alle, die letzte Woche an der zweiten Sitzung unserer Workshop-Reihe „50 Jahre, 10 Meter” im @spore.initiative teilgenommen haben! In diesem Workshop möchten wir das Leben türkischer Migrantinnen aus ihrer Perspektive darstellen und eine kollektive Collage erstellen, die ihre persönlichen Erfahrungen miteinander verbindet. Wir gestalten eine 10 Meter lange Leinwand mit Fotos, Stickereien, Texten, Zeichnungen und Erinnerungen und setzen sie gemeinsam um. Die nächste Sitzung findet am 15. August unter der Leitung von Serpil Aksöz statt, die viele Jahre lang Näh- und Stickkurse bei der Türkischen Frauenunion gegeben hat. Interessierte können sich per E-Mail an [email protected] anmelden.

@ortaokulproject is the only colourful part of my life lately. I’m so excited about this weird school — not just as one time program, but as a space to imagine potential futures together, to learn from each other’s resilience, and to share our tactics. Check it 💫 ortaokul.info

(Der deutsche Text steht in den Kommentaren. The English text is in the comment section.) Berlin Türkiye Kadınlar Birliği’nin 50 Yıllık Tarihi: Kadın Dayanışması, Bağ Kurmak ve İlham Olmak Bu projenin bir parçası olduğumuz için çok mutlu ve gururluyuz! “Berlin Türkiye Kadınlar Birliği’nin 50 Yıllık Tarihi: Kadın Dayanışması, Bağ Kurmak ve İlham Olmak” sergisi, Berlin’in ilk göçmen kadın derneği olan Türkischer Frauenverein Berlin’in 50 yıllık tarihini kutluyor. 8 Mart 1975’te kurulan dernek, 50 yıldır Türkiye’den ve ulusötesi topluluklardan kadınların haklarını savunuyor ve güçlenme, sosyal adalet ve dayanışma konularına odaklanıyor. Arşivdeki şimdiye dek yayımlanmamış belgeler, fotoğraflar ve gayri resmi röportajları da içeren sergi, birçoğu işçi sınıfına mensup göçmen kadınların direncini ve aktivizmini gözler önüne seriyor. Hepinizi Berlin’in en büyük azınlık grubundaki kadınların göç, komünite oluşturma ve kesişimsel mücadelelerle iç içe geçmiş tarihleri üzerine düşünmeye davet ediyoruz. Ziyaretçiler sergide Orta Okul’un mobil yapısını da ilk kez görebilecekler. Yarın görüşmek üzere! Kayıt olmak için [email protected] adresine e-posta gönderebilirsiniz. (Serginin anadili Türkçedir, Almanca çeviri ise yazılı açıklamalarla sağlanacaktır. Proje, Berliner Landeszentrale für politische Bildung tarafından desteklenmektedir.)

As the term “deportation” and budget cuts on diversity become increasingly normalized in Germany, we have officially established our company! 🧿 @ortaokulinitiative 🧿 We are beyond happy and deeply emotional to have achieved this as two migrant women—navigating challenges, linguistic barriers, and knowing when to say “ja” or “neee” at just the right moments. Long live Orta! May bankruptcy remain a distant concern!

Orta Okul Happening: Kadınlar ışıl ışıl! In these days, as the space for marginalized groups, activists, and arts and culture workers focusing especially on diversity continues to shrink in Berlin, maintaining our visibility in public spaces is more essential than ever. Until December 2, 2024, you can see a collage collectively created by women who migrated from Turkey on the billboard located at Gitschiner Straße 20. This billboard, which is a continuation of the Tea Sugar Dream project led by İpek Çınar, was installed with the support of the @aussen_stelle initiative. Tea Sugar Dream focused on the themes of migration and joy, in collaboration with women who migrated from Turkey to Berlin during the 1960s and 70s. How did women, who moved to Germany without knowing the language and often worked in low-paying jobs or unpaid domestic labor, preserve their joy during their migration experiences? Could their methods serve as guidance for new generations of migrants? Building on these questions, Tea Sugar Dream carried out projects centered on collective joy. This collage was created in October 2023 by a group of migrant women, with Hilal Bozkurt facilitating the collage-making process. It was produced by Hilal Bozkurt, Emine Can, Julianne Chua, İpek Çınar, Gülşen Dur, Aysel Özçoban, Nevim Şen and Nursena Topcuoglu. At the moment, it’s on display at Gitschiner Straße 20. Thank you @aussen_stelle , @sedsedsedased , dornadibaj