Misplaced Women?

art, Depo Istanbul, identity, Istanbul, Mis(s)placed Women, Misplaced Women?, Missplaced Women, performance, performance art, Performance Workshop, public space, renault, transportation, travel-blog, turkey, video-2, Videos, visibility

Mis(s)placed Women? Actions on Istanbul’s Metro Line M2

In Istanbul, Performances, Train Station, Workshops on December 2, 2023 at 3:01 pm

Mis(s)placed Women? performance art workshops and international community gatherings explore a variety of public spaces and the possibilities for temporary interventions in them, empowering participants via a laboratory type of experimentation process, while exchanging and developing new ideas, collective and individual performances, performance scores and activist actions.

Some of the most active Mis(s)placed Women? community members from the previous workshops in London, Berlin and Istanbul, and a few new ones, got together in September 2022 for the Mis(s)placed Women? Community Gathering and Live Events, organised in the frame of Tanja Ostojić: MIS(S)PLACED WOMEN? 2009–2022, A Collaborative Art Project, exhibition at Depo Istanbul, curated by: Arzu Yayıntaş and Tanja Ostojić. Internal workshop and the public Live events took place on September 20-22, at Depo Istanbul and in variety of public and semi-public places in Istanbul, with the participation of: Gaby Bila-Gunther aka LADY GABY, Dagmara Bilon, Selma Hekim, Kathryn Fischer aka Mad Kate, Susan Merrick, Tanja Ostojić, Vanessa Ponte, Adrienne Teicher, Hieu Hanh Hoang Tran aka Hany Tea, Mürüvvet Türkyılmaz, Arzu Yayıntaş, Gülhatun Yıldırım, and Gizem Yılmaz, among others.

In contrary to the 2021 Mis(s)placed Women? Istanbul itinerary workshop, where we operated with the great support of organisational team from Performistanbul and the documentation team, with a permissions to record in the public space, in 2022 we used guerrilla strategies. One of the actions took place on a rainy day (September 22, 2022), on underground line M2, between stations Şişhane-Haciosman-Şişhane, where we experimented with a number of scores from the “Mis(s)placed Women?” project archive and with new spontaneous ones.

The dynamics of our individual and group interventions and presence during the Metro performance ride were interlacing with the crowd. We entered a crowded tube M2 at Şişhane station that was getting less and less crowded towards the last stop Haciosman, where we were alone for a while and have temporarily fully occupied and owned our compartment, so to say; and while the tube was getting more and more full, on the way back towards the city center, we’ve spread more along the very long compartment and gave more space to the fellow passengers who were very curious of our actions, offen conversing and asking about them, commenting political issues and also taking pictures sometimes.

Mis(s)placed Women? Istanbul tube line M2 Performance actions with participation of: Gaby Bila-Gunther aka Lady Gaby, Dagmara Bilon, Selma Hekim, Kathryn Fischer aka Mad Kate, Susan Merrick, Tanja Ostojić, Vanessa Ponte, Hieu Hanh Hoang Tran aka Hany Tea, Adrienne Teicher, Arzu Yayıntaş, and Gülhatun Yıldırım among others, in the frame of Mis(s)placed Women? Community Gathering and Live Events, Depo Istanbul 2022, curated by: Arzu Yayıntaş and Tanja Ostojić. Photo: Gülbin Eris, copyright: T. Ostojić

For further information please visit:

Depo’s Exhibition announcement

TANJA OSTOJIĆ: Mis(s)placed Women? 2009-2022, A Collaborative Art Project, Reader in ENG

TANJA OSTOJIĆ: Mis(s)placed Women? 2009-2022 Katılımcı Bir Sanat Projesi, Reader in Turkish

Mis(s)placed Women? in memory of Jina Mahsa Amini

Misplaced Women? Video channel

Depo, Istanbul

MIS(S)PLACED WOMEN? Exhibition views at Depo

Mis(s)placed Women? project blog

Direct link to download the reader as PDF in English

Direct link to download the reader as PDF in Turkish

Mis(s)placed Women? exhibition blog announcement

Tanja Ostojić – Mis(s)placed Women? (2009-2022)

Tarabya Cultural Academy’s announcement

SEEcult.org’s announcement

Extensive project review by Tan Tan in Chinese

Photos: Gülbin Eris. Copyright: Tanja Ostojić.

Realised with the support of:

ifa – Institut für Auslandsbeziehungen, Alumni-Fonds of the Tarabya Cultural Academy, FfAI – Foundation for Arts Initiatives, Depo Istanbul, Anadolukultur, Mis(s)placed Women? community, Stiftung Kunstfonds and NEUSTART KULTUR.

Comment »

#accessible, #safecircle, performance art, Performance Art Workshop, RutWohnen, Tanja Ostojic, workshop

Outdoor Performance Workshop in Berlin Mitte

In Berlin, News, Workshops on October 4, 2023 at 7:58 pm

Tanja Ostojić: **The Safe Circle* / Der sichere Kreis**

An outdoor Performance Art Workshop in Berlin Mitte

„Noli turbare circulos meos” (Archimedes)** – Störe meine Kreise nicht

In the best tradition of the Mis(s)placed Women? Project (2009-2022) Tanja Ostojić offers a new performance score and a guidance to a multigenerational and multi-gender group of people and children, in order to engage within small affinity working groups, in performing The Safe Circle, and in reflecting upon questions such as: What does safety mean to you? What do you feel you need in order to feel safe? With whom do you feel safe? Where do you feel safe? Do you feel safe in your neighbourhood? What colour and what size is your safe circle? What considerations/reservations do you have? What other feelings do you associate with safety? Diverse responses by different persons will generate conversations integrated in the workshop process.

Where: Plato in front of the Rathaus Mitte, next to the Kino International (In case of rain, under the front roof of the Rathaus Mitte/Kino International), Karl-Marx-Allee 31-33, 10178 Berlin / U-Bhf Schillingstraße

When: Saturday, October 7, 2023, 2-5pm

Who: Open to all, free of charge, no pre-registration needed

Note: Comfortable clothes and shoes are recommended.

Accessibility: We will try to self-arrange within the workshop group(s) accessibility for all, including support for simplified language, translation to/from foreign languages, accessibility for visually/hearing/physically impaired persons. Accessibility volunteers are very welcome.

In the frame of FEST: erweiterte Begegnungsräume, around Rathaus Mitte and Kino International.

How and what can artistic-performative works in public space contribute to our encountering each other more honestly and directly? In preparation for the yet-to-be-built lesbian and queer feminist housing and cultural centre of Rut Wohnen, we experiment with participatory cultural offerings. On Saturday, October 7, 2023, the collective research culminates in a FEST: expanded meeting spaces!

The Safe Circle / Der sichere Kreis

14 – 17 Uhr — neben dem Kino International

Noli turbare circulos meos – Störe meine Kreise nicht. (Archimedes)

Tanja Ostojić bietet im Performance Art Workshop The Safe Circle / Der sichere Kreis eine Performance-Partitur an, die dazu einlädt, in kleinen Gruppen über Fragen zu dem eigenen Gefühl von Sicherheit nachzudenken, wie z.B.: Was brauchst du, um dich sicher zu fühlen? Bei wem und wo fühlst du dich sicher? Fühlst du dich in dieser Nachbarschaft sicher? Welche anderen Gefühle assoziierst du mit Sicherheit?

Der Workshop ist offen für Menschen aller Gender und Generationen und dauert drei Stunden. Bequeme Kleidung und Schuhe sind empfehlenswert.

Tanja Ostojić ist eine Performance-Künstlerin und Pädagogin, die seit 30 Jahren mit den Themen Migration und Gender arbeitet. Sie ist international für ihre sozial und politisch engagierte feministische Kunst im öffentlichen Raum bekannt.

Zugänglichkeitshinweise: Alle Orte sind zugänglich für Rollstuhlnutzende. Im Bürgeramt Rathaus Mitte stehen im 1. OG (mit Fahrstuhl) rollstuhlgerechte Toiletten zur Verfügung. Wir möchten diese Veranstaltung so zugänglich wie möglich für alle gestalten, und bitten dabei um aktive und solidarische Mithilfe. Wenn ihr eure Fähigkeiten einbringen möchtet und / oder einen bestimmten Bedarf anmelden möchtet, meldet euch bis zum 2.10.2023 per Email an <s.hanna(ät)rut-wohnen.de> oder telefonisch unter 030 86 207 856 (Büro von RuT Wohnen, ggf. Anrufbeantworter).

Wie und was können künstlerisch-performative Arbeiten in der Öffentlichkeit dazu beitragen, damit wir einander ehrlicher und direkter begegnen? In Vorbereitung auf das noch zu bauende lesbische und queer-feministische Wohn- und Kulturzentrum von @rutwohnen experimentierten wir mit partizipativen Kulturangeboten. Am Samstag, den 7.10.2023 kulminiert die kollektive Recherche in ein FEST: erweiterte Begegnungsräume!

________________________________________________________________________________________________________

* The Safe Circle was first performed by: Luciana Damiani, in the framework of Mis(s)placed Women? Workshop, Park am Nordbahnhof, Berlin, 2019. / “Der sichere Kreis” wurde zum ersten Mal aufgeführt von: Luciana Damiani, im Rahmen des “Mis(s)placed Women?” Workshop, Park am Nordbahnhof, Berlin, 2019.

** Quote from Archimedes of Syracuse in Sicily (year 209 BC), the most important mathematician and physicist of antiquity, who was killed by a soldier while drawing circles in the sand on the beach of Syracuse./ Zitat von Archimedes von Syrakus auf Sizilien (Jahr 209 v.Chr), der bedeutendste Mathematiker und Physiker der Antike, der von einem Soldaten getötet wurde, während er am Strand von Syrakus Kreise in den Sand zeichnete.

Fotocredit: Collage: S. Hanna, Fotos: T. Ostojíc , C. Flamme

Comment »

Depo Istanbul, displacement, Exhibition views, identity, Mis(s)placed Women, Misplaced Women?, Missplaced Women, participatory, performance art, Tanja Ostojic, visibility

MIS(S)PLACED WOMEN? Exhibition Views @Depo Istanbul

In Exhibitions, Istanbul on September 30, 2023 at 11:20 am

Tanja Ostojić: MIS(S)PLACED WOMEN?, 2009–2022, A Collaborative Art Project

Exhibition took place at Depo Istanbul: 15 September – 28 October 2022

Curated by: Arzu Yayıntaş and Tanja Ostojić

Depo Istanbul presented Mis(s)placed Women? by Tanja Ostojić, an exhibition that reflected upon a collaborative art project initiated by the artist in 2009. Consisting of performances, workshops, and an online platform, Mis(s)placed Women? includes contributions by over 170 individuals from six continents – Individuals who largely identify as women from diverse backgrounds.

Exhibition Contributors: Teresa Albor, Nela Antonović, Gaby Bila-Günther aka LADY GABY, Dagmara Bilon, Mia Bradić, Ines Borovac, Tatiana Bogaceva, Amy Bryzgel, David Caines, Nati Canto, Paula Chambers, Hiuwai Chan, Anaïs Clercx, Azad Colemêrg, Camilla Conocchi, contactzone, Luciana Damiani, Jelena Dinić, Nazlı Durak, Kathryn Fischer aka Mad Kate, Dyana Gravina, Karen Kipphoff, Li Fu, Hieu Hanh Hoang Tran aka Hany Tea, Selma Hekim, Monika Janulevičiūtė, Elena Marchevska, Valentina Medda, Susan Merrick, Ashley McNaughton, Branko Milisković, Persefoni Myrtsou, Marta Nitecka Barche, Mahlet Ogbe Habte, Tanja Ostojić, Sigrid Pawelke, Vanessa Ponte, Darija S. Radaković, Rhea Ramjohn, Alejandra Robles Sosa, Bahar Seki, Sabbi Senior, Evdoxia Stafylaraki, Suncica Sido, Tan Tan, Mare Tralla, Tanya Ury, Katja Vaghi, Bojana Videkanić, Roberta Weissman Nagy, Anastasio William, Hyla Willis, Jiachen Xu, Arzu Yayıntaş, Gülhatun Yıldırım, Gizem Yılmaz aka Epifani, and Suzy van Zehlendorf, among others.

The project’s participants embody and enact some of everyday life’s activities that thematise displacement, and deal with issues of migration, gender equality, climate change, feminism, queerness, gentrification, inclusion, accessibility, power relations, and vulnerability, particularly as it relates to female and transgender bodies. While investigating privilege by distinguishing between working mobility, forced or desired migration, and how arbitrary laws apply to moving bodies, Mis(s)placed Women? also explores diverse public spaces and the invisibility of certain groups within them, using feminist emancipatory methodologies and artistic and community-building practices.

From the rich project archive, some of the most relevant contributions were selected by Arzu Yayıntaş and Tanja Ostojić and displayed at Depo, as a two-floor multimedia installation consisting of photos, videos, and performance scores, along with signs, textile works, drawings of performances, artefacts, stories, and maps collected globally in the thirteen years of the project’s development. A part of the exhibition, the space has been arranged as a gathering place that invites the visitor to be an explorer and participant rather than just a viewer, while the six performance scores are there to be readapted and tried out. Exhibition readers in English and in Turkish, edited by Ostojić, are available in printed form as a free download PDF.

A sixty-eight minute documentary which follows the collective and individual performances and reflections of the participants in the “Mis(s)placed Women?” workshop which was realised (in collaboration with Performistanbul and Tarabya Cultural Academy) in Istanbul in September 2021, was also on display at Depo. The workshop uses the principles of Art as Social Practice that both explores a variety of public spaces and the possibilities for temporary interventions within them, and empowers participants via a Master-class-like block seminar, a laboratory outside of an official educational institution.

As part of the exhibition, a public programme consisting of live discussions, performances, and an international community gathering of Mis(s)placed Women? participants will take place September 20-22, 2022 at Depo and across the city of Istanbul.

September 15, 6pm – Exhibition opening at Depo
Tuesday, September 20, 5pm – Guided tour with Tanja Ostojić in English
September 20, 6:30pm– Artist talks and Q&A with Tanja Ostojić, Arzu Yayıntaş, and the live events participants
Wednesday, September 21, 5-7pm Public performances at Depo
Thursday, September 22 outdoor performances across the city 11am-4pm. Meeting point Galta Square 11am
Saturday, October 15, 4pm, Guided Tour with Arzu Yayıntaş in Turkish
Friday, October 21, 6pm, Guided Tour with Arzu Yayıntaş in Turkish
Last day of the exhibition Friday, October 28, 2022.

Live events with the participation of: Gaby Bila-Gunther aka LADY GABY, Dagmara Bilon, Selma Hekim, Kathryn Fischer aka Mad Kate, Susan Merrick, Tanja Ostojić, Vanessa Ponte, Hieu Hanh Hoang Tran aka Hany Tea, Arzu Yayıntaş, Gülhatun Yıldırım, Gizem Yılmaz, Mürüvvet Türkyılmaz, and Adrienne Teicher among others.