Talk
April 26, 2019 / 18:30
As part of the exhibition Out of Ink: Interpretations from Chinese Contemporary Art, Pera Museum presents a talk by the academic and curator Beth McKillop, who contributed to the exhibition’s catalogue with an essay.
Before the 20th century, ink was always central to the visual and written culture of educated Chinese people. It was made and mixed, stored and treasured, decorated and collected throughout the country’s long history. Successive generations of writers and artists have written and painted with ink, seeing it as the most natural medium for self-expression. In our times, there are still many traditional artists who produce work in the classical style, in addition to those who play on the material and spiritual qualities of ink to explore new possibilities, sometimes in new media.
The talk will consider the physical qualities of ink in China, reflecting on ways it was made and used in pre-modern times. By looking at the physical qualities of ink made at different times in China’s past, and some remarkable examples of surviving ink cakes, as well as the stories and anecdotes that surround them, the lecture will provide a historical context for exploring the work of the 21st century artists on display in the exhibition.
Beth McKillop
Beth McKillop’s career began at the British Library, where she was curator of Chinese and Korean collections. In 2004 she moved to be Keeper of the Asia Department at the Victoria and Albert Museum, later working as Director of Collections and Museum Deputy Director there. Since 2016 she has been a senior research fellow at the V&A, and a visiting lecturer at London University’s School of Oriental and African Studies.
Free admissions, drop in. This event will take place in the oditorium. The talk will be in English with simultaneous Turkish translation.
Temporary Exhibition
Out of Ink: Interpretations from Chinese Contemporary Art explored the essential ideals of the ink painting tradition as manifest in the work of 13 contemporary artists at work in China.
Click for more information about the exhibition.
A firm believer in the idea that a collection needs to be upheld at least by four generations and comparing this continuity to a relay race, Nahit Kabakcı began creating the Huma Kabakcı Collection from the 1980s onwards. Today, the collection can be considered one of the most important and outstanding examples among the rare, consciously created, and long-lasting ones of its kind in Turkey.
The second part of exhibition illustrates Alberto Giacometti’s relations with Post-Cubist artists and the Surrealist movement between 1922 and 1935, one of the important sculptures series he created during his first years in Paris, and the critical role he played in the art scene of the period.
He had imagined the court room as a big place. It wasn’t. It was about the size of his living room, with an elevation at one end, with a dais on it. The judges and the attorneys sat there. Below it was an old wooden rail, worn out in some places. That was his place. There was another seat for his lawyer. At the back, about 20 or 30 chairs were stowed out for the non-existent crowd.
Tuesday - Saturday 10:00 - 19:00
Friday 10:00 - 22:00
Sunday 12:00 - 18:00
The museum is closed on Mondays.
On Wednesdays, the students can
visit the museum free of admission.
Full ticket: 200 TL
Discounted: 100 TL
Groups: 150 TL (minimum 10 people)
