The curator approaches the theme of the IV. Yeditepe Biennial, “Witness”, through the most delicate and dynamic tension in the existential journey of humanity: Awareness and Deviations. Rather than viewing the concept of witnessing as a frozen moment or a finalized state, this perspective interprets it as a continuous process-a state of becoming, a flow, and a site of struggle.

Humanity exists as a whole, encompassing both material and metaphysical dimensions. In this search for integrity, the process of “establishing one’s own existence” is not a linear, flawless trajectory, but a complex progression woven with moments of awareness and the deviations from them. For the curator, the essential issue is not to depict an ideal state of testimony, but to investigate the artist’s sincere and courageous projections within this process. From this viewpoint, the artwork ceases to be a dull mirror of an achieved truth; instead, it becomes a living record of a search, filled with hesitations, rectifications, and realignments.

In this context, the fundamental question posed to the participating artists and the audience is: “As you construct your existence as an artist within the disciplined world of traditional arts, which moments of awareness and which deviations have you witnessed? How does your work bear the traces of this internal testimony?”

This inquiry positions the artist not merely as a practitioner of technique, but as a subject who, by traversing that technique, becomes a witness to their own existence. This approach also necessitates a reconsideration of concepts such as “error” or “flaw”. Within the tradition’s quest for perfection, perhaps the greatest aesthetic and spiritual depth lies in those moments when the artist confronts their own human deviations and integrates them into their work. The curatorial selection pursues this very question, aiming to confront the viewer with the shattering sincerity behind the molds of classical arts and the living tradition. For the curator, witnessing is not merely about carrying a legacy from the past to the present; it is a genuine and fragile experience of existing in the now, authentically and individually, under the weight and light of that legacy.

İsmail Hakkı Gurbetçi