Who Doesn’t Love You, May Die

Anna Laudel Istanbul welcomes the summer season with a group exhibition named Who Doesn’t Love You, May Die from May 26 to September 10, 2023.

Curated by art journalist M. Gülben Çapan, the exhibition is named after Tüdanya’s 1986 hit song (aka, Seni Sevmeyen Ölsün), featuring a selection of interdisciplinary works of eight artists working with different materials and techniques, including Anıl Can, Ardan Özmenoğlu, CANAN, Cansu Yıldıran, Haluk Çobanoğlu, Rasim Aksan, Tuğberk Selçuk and Yasemin Özcan.

A major cultural phenomenon of the 1960s that emerged as a reaction to Turkey’s modernization efforts, Arabesque  is the main theme of the exhibition. Emphasising difficult living conditions, Arabesque culture was restricted and censored for many years, then manifested itself in different forms and shapes throughout the history of music.                                     

The exhibition highlights the journey of Arabesque music changing and evolving into a popular music genre that is enjoyed by wider audiences by being liberated day by day. Inspired by the social gap between the figures referred to as the “fathers” of arabesque in the past and those who continue to live in harsh conditions of the “arabesque lifestyle” today, the selection invites us to reconsider the “left out” who are still in search of their identities.

Who Doesn’t Love You May Die tells the story of the social transformation of the heroes created by this culture that seeks a collective self-identity and a “saviour” through the tragedy of pain and the rebellion of love by showing how new heroes are created.

The selection of artworks reflects the social change of the heroes created by the Arabesque culture, who are in search of a collective self identity and a “saviour” through the tragedy of pain, the rebellion of love and how new heroes are created with the movement from the margins to the centre and the power of this movement.

The comprehensive group exhibition Who Doesn’t Love You, May Die curated by M. Gülben Çapan, focusing on Arabesque culture as the most personal expression of a rebellious spirit, will be on display at Anna Laudel until September 10, 2023.

M. Gülben Çapan
She was born in Istanbul. She graduated from Bilgi University, Department of Comparative Literature. She did her MA in Art Journalism at Central St. Martins. For many years, she worked as a reporter for various publications such as Elle Magazine, Akşam Newspaper, Istanbul Art News, and Diken.com.tr. In 2021, her first story collection Yalnızlık Başkanlığı was published. She lives in Istanbul and continues to write stories.