Ersöz Ata at Grand Hotel de Londres

Ersöz Ata, having articulated various religious and spiritual codes in his last collection introduced in Spring 2012, assembles an era extending from Antiquity to Renaissance, through a single frame. Maria Magdalena, on of the most remarkable pieces among his last collection of Ata, represents the spiritual references upon the body of a woman in a sculptural form. 

This costume stands gracefully in the lounge of the marvelous Grand Hotel de Londres and is fully made out of metal and glass. Ersöz Ata works and lives in Istanbul. He studied design, ceramic and fashion design and specialized in leather and fur product design. 

www.ersozata.com

Covers (2001-2012) at FAI

(photocredits: JW Kaldenbach)
 
Covers (2001-2012) is a chronological display of the front pages of BUTT, Fantastic Man and The Gentlewoman, three international magazines founded and published by Gert Jonkers and Jop van Bennekom from Amsterdam, The Netherlands.

However different they may be, the magazines share a keen interest in fascinating personalities and real people with captivating stories that please both readers and spectators. The show that originality and personal style are inspiring qualities in men and women of the 21st century. 

Down the historic city centre of Istanbul you can find FAI. It stands for Future Anecdotes Istanbul. A graphic design studio run by Asli Altay who has an MA from Graphic Design and Communication, Chelsea College of Art and Design, London. Her book 'Future Anecdotes'; which gave the name of the studio, is in the Tate Modern Artist’s Book Collection in London, amongst some other private and public collections. Asli has also conducted lectures and workshops in London College of Communication, Chelsea College of Art & Design and University of Creative Arts.

www.fantasticman.com

www.thegentlewoman.com

www.futureanecdotesistanbul.com

Merva Tuna's performance @ Building

Merve Tuna's idea to put a belly dancer in a black latex outfit with matching mask, started when she travelled the London tube while listening to German cyber punk rock. Tuna originates from Istanbul and doesn't deliver boring fashion. This Turkish fashion designer has a keen sense of disturbing fashion.

After a period of taxidermia-fashion, she went from dead animals having orgies on a dress towards belly dancers in latex. At SALON/ we are more than happy to demonstrate a fresh vision of fashion with contradictions.
After her performance in the garden of design-store Building, she elaborates on her love for contradictions. "The song made me think about my youth, which is odd because it was German cyber punk, something that was not there when I was a child." She explains how one thing let to another. Because she felt there was a real resemblance with belly dance music, she felt she had to take this weirdness into a higher level. And she put in into an act.

A wise decision. Months later she shows her London tube idea by using a belly dancer wearing a S&M mask, a bra and a skirt with strings. All latex, all black, all Merve Tuna.

Antione Peters 'HOPE' @ Building

A silhouette without arms or head that continuously changes shape. This fantasy-figure is covered in crude oil in which various symbols of religions and pop culture are awaiting to be discovered. With HOPE Peters investigates the relationships between capitalism, power, belief and nature without prejudgment. His goal is to draw new connections and urge his audience into engaging in thoughtful dialogue.

The original idea for this project was to create a new world out of the purity of silhouettes and print design. This new world became a character, an abstract figure that changes shape all the time. Peters' collection are always subversive and socially critical, however in this project the designer is even more outspoken than usual.

Antoine Peters: "When someone sees connections between religion and being covered in oil, it probably comes from somewhere. However, it would be unfortunate if people only see the negative. With help of the negative I can illuminate the positive. For me, it's all about hope. For some, hope may be about wearing a chain with a cross. For others, hope is the belief in love, or the belief in the potential of the internet to create a better world. This project focuses on how to get along with each other and the world. Hope, in whatever form, breathes life into life."

In collaboration with dancer Alexe Jansen and photographer Marc Deurloo, Peters captured his design in a series of pictures, and together with Oscar Verpoort he created a short movie featuring music by Krause.

The print design is developed in collaboration with self-trained designer Alain Delluc, living and working in Istres, France. The design was created with 3D programs that were used for animated movies by Pixar and Disney.

See the series of pictures via www.antoinepeters.com

Trade Office by Frank Bruggeman & Eric Roelen

There it is. A quick coming of age. One month ago the idea came. One week ago the actual building started. And after a two-day-ride from the Netherlands to Istanbul it erected on the quay of Karaköy Harbor. "We wanted to symbolize the 400 years of cultural relations between Turkey and the Netherlands." 

The idea of this trading office began to form when Bruggeman was working on his flower pieces for the quay of Karaköy Harbor. There, next to the Clipper Stad Amsterdam, the symbol of 400 years of cultural and diplomatic relations between the two European countries stands strong. Bruggeman joined forces with Eric Roelen to work on the concept of a trading office, which is more or less a humble shop that has no goods on display but is only shifting papers that accompany the flow of goods. Roelen designed the Evergreen trading office. 

Elements of a trading office were combined with tulip bulbs and other plant materials that symbolize the large Dutch flower and plant export. This installation can be perceived as a kind of revenge: bulbs and plants that existed only on paper have suddenly come alive to reclaim their central position in the trading office. Inside the trading office, which is a small wooden house, the size of a garden house, there is a variation of nature locally found by Bruggeman, for example the dead branch of an conifer in it. This piece of work has more symbols. The tulip, the most Dutch symbol, is actually a Turkish flower. Therefor Bruggeman used one tile with a blue tulip. A typical Turkish decoration. 

The trading office is called 'Evergreen'. Bruggeman explains: "There is a huge Dutch trading company called Evergreen, they use big containers which you see everywhere. Besides that Evergreen is also a kind of fir, I am, in my work, keen on using dead pieces of green. They are, of course, not ever green at all."

(photocredits: JW Kaldenbach)