We’ve done our best to compile events we’re aware of. If you think we’ve forgotten one or want to see your event featured, please send an e-mail (with English press info) to events@yabangee.com.
This Weekend:
Friday/Saturday: %100 Music: Emiliana Torrini and The Colorist @ Salon IKSV – “One of the strongest voices in the Icelandic music scene. Reached millions around the world with her delicate and sincere vocals. Her soft and child-like voice turned passionate love stories into unique acoustic folk songs.”
Saturday/Sunday: Marla Antoinette Flea Market for Stray Animals – “All the money that we’ll raise after sales will be spent for the animals under the care of our (almost 1 year old) animal charity organization: Çak Bi Pati. Take your two and/or four legged friends and come, join us!”
Friday:
The ‘Delight’ful Night Party @ The Hall – “The talented American-Greek belly dancer Athena Najat will be there to add a unique spin on the evening. DJ Queto will be present to get the party started, with DJ Valerio Proto following up to kick it up a notch.”
MAVIBLAU Presents: Keep Calm and Feel Arabesk – “A small quiz will give everyone the chance to test their knowledge on Arabesk or otherwise learn more about it. Afterwards you are invited to enjoy the evening through dancing and singing with the help of music, karaoke, or by writing your own songs.”
Hey! Douglas @ Babylon Bomonti – “Hey! Douglas, one of the most successful solo projects of the last decade, consists of Veyasin’s sets and samples blending psychedelic, funk and soul pieces from the 1970s with disco rhythms. Come join us at Babylon for a nostalgic performance where Veyasin reinterprets 1970s hits under Hey! Douglas.”
7th International Sefika Kutluer Festival – Tutti Mozart Orchestra @ Zorlu PSM – “On December the 2nd at the Zorlu PSM Drama Hall in Istanbul, as the opening concert of the festival in İstanbul, Austrian Tutti Mozart Orchestra under the baton of Vinicius Kattah, will accompany Kutluer on a whole Mozart program.”
Screening: Kara Atlas [Dark Atlas] @ SALT Galata (English Subtitles) – “…maps the struggle against the planned or already existing power plants in Turkey, shedding light on basic human rights and supporting the common voice ranging from different regions and in different languages in attempt to take back these lands.”
Runaway w/ Alex.Do & SHDW + Obscure Shape @ indigo – “Described by his mentor and closest colleague, who just happens to be one of the main actors in today’s techno circuit, RØDHÅD as a ‘melancholic guy’, Alex.Do’s distinctively versatile sets prove there’s more to him than that.”
Saturday:
Fanfarai (and Jean Tonique Midnight Session) @ Babylon Bomonti – “Fanfarai was formed by musicians coming from different social, musical and cultural backgrounds and locations – France, Morocco and Algeria, just to name a few. The band makes extraordinary covers of Berber, Andalusian, Cuban and Turkish music with conventional Maghreb beats such as rai, chaabi and gnavi.”
Ending: “Ceratonia” @ Leica Gallery Istanbul – “Evidently, his choices in approaching the human subject are very different from a classical approach to portraiture. At times he exhibits them only partially, while at other times he positions them in a way that their depth is accessible only to the viewer’s own discovery via subjective perception.”
Betoko @ Zorlu PSM Studio – “Currently the head of two records called OKO Recordings and Chilli Mint Music, Betoko makes smooth transitions among house, techno and minimal techno. After the single Raining Again which reached over 19 million views on Youtube, he continued his success with U So Fine and Dance On My Feet EP. Dancefloor hits such as Little Miss Darkness and Space Invader quickly followed…”
Red Bull Music Academy Night: Kiasmos (DJ Set) @ indigo – “Kiasmos is made up of Icelandic BAFTA-winning composer Ólafur Arnalds, known for his unique blend of minimal piano and string compositions with electronic sounds, and Janus Rasmussen from the Faroe Islands, known as the mastermind of the electro-pop outfit Bloodgroup.”
Mitte Christmas Market with friends & music – “Get warm with hot drinks, try special Christmas Desserts, enjoy Waffels in the garden, Bratapfel, Hot Applejuice, Cinnamon Buns aaaand Glüh-Mate and choose already a few presents from local designers’ stands at Mitte mini designers bazaar!”
Documentary Night @ CIRCUIT – “Not Business As Usual is a provocative look at capitalism and the unintended costs of success. The film tracks the changing landscape of business with the rising tide of conscious capitalism, told through the stories of local entrepreneurs who have found innovative ways to bring humanity back into business.”
WHY SO SER!OUS presents DJUMA SOUNDSYSTEM, Junior, Ali Efe Dinç @ KiKi – Another night of late-night fun from WHY SO SER!OUS.
The Detroit Techno Night @ minimüzikhol – “Mattia Trani is regarded as one of the most talented and interesting young artists of the techno scene of these recent years. Following in his father’s footsteps,he cultivated his passion for music since childhood finding his own musical roots in the piano study and later in both the world of DJing and in the music production.”
Starting: “Fractum Regnum” @ Art On Istanbul – “Centered on experimental media and digital arts with a focus on generative computer arts in his works and visuals, Ozan Türkkan presents his works featuring virtual reality installations, as well as those relying on light frequency, such as holograms through which he plays with spectators` perceptions; generative videos from his researches in fractal geometry and 3D Lenticular prints.”
Screening: Seeds of Time @ SALT Galata (English) – “A perfect storm is brewing as agriculture pioneer Cary Fowler races against time to protect the future of our food. Seed banks around the world are crumbling, crop failures are producing starvation and rioting, and the accelerating effects of climate change are hitting farmers globally…”
Screening: Te Henua e Nnoho [There Once was an Island] @ SALT Galata (English Subtitles) – “Once wildly debated, extended agreement on the true impact of climate change has affected everything from global food production to coastal property sales, causing obvious and direct harm to the people of Takuu. As more locals are forced to abandon traditional activities and leave the island for opportunities elsewhere, the pressures on their culture is unavoidable.”
Taxim Sound: Yard Vibes #12 @ Irie Reggae Bar – Another energetic Yard Vibes session awaits with local DJs Taxim Sound.
Make the Move Presents: Charlotte de Witte @ ROXY CLUB – “Charlotte first caught the whole world’s attention under the pseudonym Raving George with another Belgian modern-icons Oscar and the Wolf featuring ‘You’re Mine’ and skyrocketed in the underground electronic music scene with her successive releases, remixes and sets, as well as her unique performances all around the globe.”
Sunday:
International Women of Istanbul Christmas Festival – “The festival offers shopping, children’s entertainment, international food court, raffles, and other activities. Special decorations, caroling, gifts for kids from Father Christmas, and a mistletoe together makes this festive must-visit event!”
La Caravane Passe @ Babylon Bomonti – “La Caravane Passe was born from the idea of transforming the gypsy music, expressing emotions with conventional instruments. Staying loyal to their genre, the band expanded the boundaries of their music with the flavours of rock, hip-hop, reggae, tarantella and Balkan tango.” (Free!)
Quiz Night for Cats @ Arsen Lüpen – “With a great new venue at Arsen Lupen, our own special Sunday menu, huge range of international beers and spirits, a roaring log fire… and the best Quiz in Istanbul!”
Bean Beat Bite #51 at Sold Abbasağa – Coming off a fun-filled celebration for their 50th edition, we now return to discovering amazing new coffee shops in the city.
Ending: “Hellion Equilibrium” @ Dirimart Dolapdere – “Sarah Morris’ films and paintings explore the cultural, economic, and social typologies of mega-cities like Beijing and Rio.”
Ongoing:
“Ugly” @ x-ist – “Rendering contemporary problems ponderable and maybe laughable by expressing them through humour, this time the caricature artists meet the audience with their works as a reply to how outside the form of caricature they can address the uglinesses of the world in which we are living.”
“Who Throws Whom Overboard?” @ SALT Galata – “The exhibition brings together photographic works, wall texts, films and installations addressing migration, borders, citizenship, capital and alternative economics. It does not suggest that these “issues” are related in terms of policy, but rather that they can be read as the conjoined faces of an ongoing, global crisis.”
“Constructed” @ Zilberman Gallery – “Zeynep Kayan’s works reflect on the urge to escape the two-dimensional surface of photographs through chance and experiments again with the surface. Her process revolves around capturing and modifying the same scene again and again, looking for infinite possibilities in line with the artist’s wish to escape, letting the imagery stay in one and only state.”
“Lifesaving” @ Zilberman Gallery – “The metaphor of water is omnipresent in Janet Bellotto’s work and is a comment on submersion and reflection. Bellotto’s art tries to capture the in-between states that are always in flux. She is interested in oral histories, headlines and legends; and how they are reflected in daily life.”
“Antique Romance” @ Pi Artworks Istanbul – “Antique Romance consists of a considered and minimal selection of paintings and sculptures that showcase the two main sides of Maris’ practice. These new semi-abstract compositions combine in unusual ways references to objects and architecture from both ancient cultures and contemporary civilizations.”
“Cold Front from the Balkans” @ Pera Museum – “The exhibition focuses on different generations of artists and art groups from the Balkan region. The exhibition avoids the usual unflattering political connotations the region’s name inevitably brings up but instead focuses on a natural phenomenon — the wind.”
“Wanderer on the Sea of Light” @ Pera Museum – “French artist Félix Ziem is one of the most original landscape painters of the 19th century. The exhibition Wanderer on the Sea of Light presents Ziem as an artist who left his mark on 19th century painting and who is mostly known for his paintings of Istanbul and Venice, where the city and the sea are intertwined.”
“Obstacles” @ Space Debris – “Channeling negative emotions and reactions into an artistic creation rather than destructive emotion, self-harm, or harm inflicted upon others. That is the challenge. It’s where artist Zeynep Birced excels.”
“EU 48/6/N” @ Elgiz Museum – “Rahmi Aksungur is a highly influential sculptor and academician whose body of work has made a significant contribution to contemporary sculpture in Turkey.”
Looking for more events happening in Istanbul? Keep up with our What’s On section.
