A metal sculpture is on display at Halic Shipyard in Istanbul, Turkey, on Nov. 13, 2020. An historic shipyard in Istanbul, where construction and maintenance of city line ferries take place, has recently been transformed into a giant contemporary art atelier with the aim of contributing to the art and cultural development of the largest Turkish city. (Photo by Osman Orsal/Xinhua)
ISTANBUL, Nov. 13 (Xinhua) -- An historic shipyard in Istanbul, where construction and maintenance of city line ferries take place, has recently been transformed into a giant contemporary art atelier with the aim of contributing to the art and cultural development of the largest Turkish city.
Halic Shipyard, founded in 1455 on the shores of the Golden Horn during the Ottoman era, hosted seven Turkish sculptors as part of an art event organized by the Istanbul municipality.
The participating artists created large-scale sculptures from metal in about three weeks.
The pieces are currently on display at the shipyard, waiting to be installed in different open-air public spaces in the city in the upcoming days.
"What makes this project so unique is the venue itself, which, as one of the oldest shipyards in the world, is still operational," Kemal Tufan, curator of the event, told Xinhua on Friday.
"It was very meaningful that this historical site was opened to the artists who can produce contemporary artworks in this magnificent working environment," Tufan said, noting the event was also intended to enable the recognition of the shipyard by a wider audience.
According to the curator, some senior mechanics of the shipyard cooperated with the artists by helping them with the welding, cutting, and bending activities.
Tufan, who created a giant bluebird sculpture for the project, said the artists decided on metal as the sole element of the project for it is the same material used in the construction of ferries.
Due to the COVID-19 outbreak, the project was limited to Turkish artists this year. But Tufan said as soon as the pandemic would be over, he would invite some Chinese contemporary art masters to Istanbul.
"I have good connections with Chinese artists, and I have six to seven big-size sculptures on display in China, and I will join in a new project there next year," he explained. Enditem
