Müze Gazhane, Upcycle Istanbul Art and Design Festival, 2023.

The “Upcycle Istanbul Art and Design Festival”, organized by the sustainable social impact platform Upcycle Istanbul, will start on June 5, World Environment Day, at Müze Gazhane. The festival, which focuses on upcycling and aims to raise awareness about the efficient use of resources by leveraging the transformative power of art, invites us to question the environmental impact of our consumption habits together.

By initiating a movement with the call “Join the Upcycle Movement”, the “Upcycle Istanbul Art and Design Festival” involves institutions, NGOs, associations, artists, designers, the public, and the media in interactive action and continues to embrace the theme of responsible consumption this year. The festival aims to highlight the impact of consumption habits on a world with limited resources and to collectively reflect on the sustainable environmental benefits of upcycling and recycling. It features inspiring artworks on sustainability, designs giving a second chance to waste, short film screenings, various talks, and workshops.

What Awaits Us at the Festival?

Curated by art consultant Erkan Doğanay, the “Upcycle Istanbul Art and Design Festival” presents impactful works by numerous artists and designers to visitors, as it does every year. The festival includes renowned names such as Alper Aydın, Gürbüz Doğan Ekşioğlu, Pınar Akkurt, Mahmut Celayir, Genco Gülan, Aytuğ Aykut, Serkan Aka, Nergiz Yeşil, Can Berk Özcan, Gül Ilgaz, İrfan Önürmen, Yağızhan Çalışkan, Reyhan Polat, Lidya Duymuş, and Ayşegül Düşek. It features inspiring artworks on sustainability, designs that give a second chance to waste, short film screenings, various talks, and workshops.

Believing in the transformative power of art, the “Upcycle Art and Design Festival” shares the inspiration for upcycling with young artists at the festival venue. This year, the festival will showcase works from university students who are addressing the climate crisis as well as comprehensively working with waste and found materials. One standout project at the festival is an exhibition by students from the Istanbul Technical University (İTÜ) Department of Architecture. The exhibition focuses on questioning the position and nature of architecture, particularly about the İzmir Harmandalı Çöplüğü (Harmandalı Landfill in Izmir) and the İzmit Körfez (Izmit Gulf) fill area. Exploring the accumulation and omnipresence of waste, offcuts, and leftovers, this exhibition also offers workshops for high school students interested in studying architecture.

Müze Gazhane, Upcycle Istanbul Art and Design Festival, 2023.

The Upcycle Stage, situated in the Q Deck venue of Müze Gazhane, presents a program brimming with inspiring events for festival participants. As part of the Upcycle Istanbul Talks, organized in collaboration with the podcast series “Esmiyor”, which addresses the climate crisis, the stage hosts eco-friendly artists, designers, activists, academics, and NGOs. One notable workshop within the festival focuses on the concept of “Biomimicry” and sustainable design strategies inspired by nature. Conducted by Utku Güven and Naz Yaman from the Esmiyor team, this workshop explores inspiring examples of biomimicry applications and shares strategies and practical information on how participants can incorporate biomimicry into their projects. The festival offers a diverse range of workshop contents suitable for both adults and children, providing visitors with numerous opportunities to integrate the transformation of waste materials into their daily lives.

In addition to workshops and exhibitions, the festival includes screenings of various films, documentaries, and short films. A selection of short films addressing the “water crisis”, curated by Zeynep Atakan, the artistic director of the Sabancı Foundation Short Film Platform, known for producing films awarded the Golden Palm and the Flying Broom Bilge Olgaç Merit Awards, will be screened on the Upcycle Istanbul Stage.

The festival, which will continue until June 9, invites everyone who wants to adopt responsible consumption habits for the betterment of our planet with limited resources to Müze Gazhane. You can stay updated on the event program by following Upcycle Istanbul’s Instagram page.