Akbank Sanat

Contemporary İstanbul

In the most extensive "modern and contemporary art" event in Turkey, Contemporary Istanbul is promoting the cultural and artistic life of our country to the world. Since 2007, the sponsor of Contemporary Istanbul, Akbank, Turkey's most important contemporary art fair in the international art arena Contemporary Istanbul, which gave its contribution to the realization it was also made its name. Besides the fair event, Contemporary Istanbul continues to offer many side events and art projects throughout the year, from discussion panels to exhibitions.

Master Sculptor Rodin in Istanbul

An artist who is among the foremost innovators of the modern age... One of the three great master sculptors of all time, along with Phidias and Michelangelo...

A creator who left his mark on the human consciousness with works like The Thinker, The Kiss, The Gates of Hell and Balzac... A remarkable genius whose ideas, conflicts, love affairs and scandals as well as his works indelibly engraved an age: Auguste Rodin!

Auguste Rodin carried Europe's deep-rooted tradition of sculpture out of the sentimental romanticism of the 19th century into the 20th century and the groundbreaking art of the modern age. From his smallest sculptures to his most imposing monuments, he demonstrated to contemporary and future generations what sculpture is and is not with the same powerful spirit and astounding mastery.

Sabancı University's Sakıp Sabancı Museum is proud to have hosted works by this great master of the art of sculpture in an exhibition which was a fitting sequel to the recent Picasso exhibition. The Rodin Museum, which inherited the sculptor's private collection as well as his own works, loaned 203 pieces for this exhibition. In addition to such famous works as The Thinker, The Kiss and Walking Man, the exhibition included nearly a hundred more sculptures, drawings, photographs and some of the ancient statues in Rodin's private collection. All these made it possible to follow Rodin's path from the works of his youth to those of his maturity, while throwing light on lesser known aspects of his artistic life: his drawings and collection of antiquities.

Salvador Dalí: A Surrealist in Istanbul

The Sabancı University Sakıp Sabancı Museum (SSM), with the sponsorship of Akbank and in cooperation with the Gala-Salvador Dalí Foundation, hosts one of the 20th century’s most important artists and representative of the Surrealist movement Salvador Dalí in September of 2008.

The exhibition consists of a comprehensive retrospective of the works of Salvador Dalí; in addition to 270 works consisting of oil paintings, drawings and works of graphic art, a variety of manuscripts, photographs and other documents are included. The exhibition is also distinguished by the fact that it is the largest single exhibition ever organised outside Figueres exclusively with material from the Foundation’s collection. The exhibition can be viewed between 20 September 2008 and 01 February 2009.

Anish Kapoor

S.U. Sakıp Sabancı Museum in collaboration with Akbank, hosts the first major exhibition in Turkey by leading international artist, Anish Kapoor. Sponsored by Akbank, on the occasion of their 65th year, Anish Kapoor’s works are presented at SSM from 10 September 2013 to 2 February 2014.

The exhibition, which is curated by Sir Norman Rosenthal, is the first to focus on the artist’s stone sculptures in marble, alabaster and other materials, many of which have not been seen in public before. The exhibition also includes iconic works such as Sky Mirror and Yellow, bringing together sculpture, architecture, engineering and technology. The highly anticipated exhibition will be presented both in the galleries and the gardens of Sakıp Sabancı Museum.

ZERO. Countdown to the Future

The innovative and dynamic spirit of ZERO, which is the great art movement born in the middle of the 20th century, was in Istanbul.

As one of the most important supporters of modern and contemporary art in Turkey, Akbank Sanat brought together art lovers with the works of world-renowned painter and sculptor such as Auguste Rodin, Salvador Dali and Anish Kapoor with the cooperation of Sabancı University and Sakıp Sabancı Museum.

As a continuation of our present study, the first wide-ranging exhibition in Turkey ZERO that is one of the international art movement marked the twentieth century was in Istanbul.

Born with the philosophy of "restarting" by a group of artists as a response to the devastation and pessimism in the aftermath of World War II, the ZERO met art lovers in collaboration with Akbank Sanat, Sabancı University and Sakıp Sabancı Museum between September 2, 2015 and January 10, 2016.

Exhibition; brings together over 100 works by the founders of the movement Heinz Mack, Otto Piene and Günther Uecker, along with the works of Yves Klein, Piero Manzoni and Lucio Fontana.