Borusan Contemporary presents Edward Burtynsky: Shifting Topography, the Canadian artist’s first major solo exhibition in Türkiye, curated by Marcus Schubert. The show brings new work together with a comprehensive selection of works from Burtynsky’s oeuvre from the past 30 years.
Known for photographs that capture the complex intersections between nature and human industry, Burtynsky has examined the reshaping of our natural world for more than four decades. His photos extend beyond documentation, offering a lifelong meditation on the relationship between humanity and our planet.
Commissioned by Borusan Contemporary Art Collection, each floor of the exhibition is organized under a different theme. “Erosion” debuts many new images that Burtynsky produced during his expedition across central Anatolia and the Mediterranean. From India’s Stepwells to the lithium brine fields of Chile’s Atacama Desert, “Water and Salt” traces the role of these two elemental forces in shaping the environmental and cultural landscapes of our time. “African Studies” offers an enquiry into the dramatic change numerous Sub-Saharan countries are facing as a result of human activity. “Nature” marks a return to Burtynsky’s early landscape photography of the 1980s — this time enriched by over four decades of experience. “Quarries” presents signature selections from the middle period of Burtynsky’s career that survey these forms of negative architecture. “Berezniki Mine” offers a glimpse into the idea of how mines are not just industrial sites but also metaphors for transformation, while “Oil” captures the picture of an accessible fuel that enabled marvels of the industrial revolution while fostering one of the gravest dilemmas of our age: climate change.
Located at the historic building known as Istanbul’s Haunted Mansion, Borusan Contemporary is an institution devoted to contemporary art that provides a multi-platform program of exhibitions, events, and educational activities based on the Borusan Contemporary Art Collection. The institution has promoted the production of new artworks and publications through commissions and acquisitions since 2011.
To learn more, visit borusancontemporary.com.
