Didem Pekün, Of Dice And Men, 2016. Video Still.
| Dates: | 3 March – 1 April 2016 |
| Times: | Mon – Sat: 11:00 – 18:00 Closed Easter weekend: 25–28 March |
| In Conversation: | 02 March 2016 18:00–19:00 Didem Pekün with curator Nick Aikens |
| Opening reception: | 02 March 2016 19:00–21:00 |
Delfina Foundation is delighted to present Turkish artist Didem Pekün’s first solo exhibition in London, Of Dice and Men.
A throw of the dice acts as a metaphor for individual existence, where the patterns of everyday life are driven by chance and our actions are a choice. The throw affirms a sense of urgency, as well as an awareness of how our lives and history are in a perpetual state of repetition, yet with paradoxical variations.
Of Dice and Men is a video essay punctuated by moments of subjective consequence. Presented in dialogue across two screens, the footage captures London and Istanbul, the two cities that Pekün’s life straddles and is torn between. It includes footage of the Occupy movements that began in London in 2011 as well as Istanbul’s Gezi protests in 2013, interlaced with more joyful and elusive experiences: boys diving into the Bosphorus or a first encounter with a feat of nature.
Attuned to the differing neoliberal conditions, dynamics and pressures of these contexts, Pekün mediates moments of rupture and violence in day-to-day life. In making this work, Pekün was driven by a desire to capture and make sense of a present that she felt was shifting around her, palpable in the unfolding events and the emergence of a new political subjectivity. Of Dice and Men is a reflection on how we react to and negotiate the unfolding present, where subjectivity and political agency are brought to bear.
Through its cyclical composition, and meditative, rhythmic temperament, Of Dice and Men speaks to the repetitive flow of history. Here history appears as a play, the same play performed anew across generations but with different directors, actors, and sets. The play is performed in different languages, with different audiences, each experiencing the script in new ways.
Biography
Didem Pekün‘s work explores both research and practice; conceptually it deals with the production of subjectivities within violent geographies, displacement, and contemporary border politics. Her studio practice includes documentaries and video installations, and her work have screened internationally at festivals and galleries, (Berlinale, Arnolfini, Oberhausen, Punto de Vista, WOMEX, MUSAC, SALT Istanbul) have received and been nominated to awards, (British Council), and attended residencies (Delfina and Greenhouse). Following a BA in Music at SOAS, and an MA on Screen Documentary at Goldsmiths, she is currently a practice-based PhD candidate in Visual Cultures, Goldsmiths and a faculty member at Media and Visual Arts Department at Koc University.