Işıl Eğrikavuk
Ne İlyas Ne Cemşit
Performance
2 days, 45 min., 2024
In collaboration with Performistanbul.
Realised in Performistanbul (Istanbul, Turkey) as part of Ne İlyas Ne Cemşit exhibition.

Performers: Gökçe Gizem Uzun, Öykü Gür, Hazal Deniz Tunç, Pınar Yün, Doğa Tutal, Peren Vardarlıer, Ece Uzunhasan

Işıl Eğrikavuk’s new exhibition “Ne İlyas Ne Cemşit” (Neither İlyas Nor Cemşit) is based on the movie “The Girl with the Red Scarf”, based on Chinghiz Aytmatov’s novel of the same name. The movie features two main male characters and a female character who has to choose between them: Cemşit, İlyas and Asya. At the end of the movie, Asya’s dilemma to choose between the man she loves; İlyas and the kind-hearted Cemşit, conveys a fundamental message. Asya’s existence, self-worth, survival and her possibility of being loved seem to depend on this choice. Eğrikavuk’s performative photography work offers Asya a third alternative.

Just before the International Women’s Day on March 8, the artist presents an innovative approach to women’s ability to make their own choices, while changing the existing cult stories, through the exhibition and the performance that will be actualised with the participants in Performistanbul. As part of the exhibition, a live performance, two photographs, a video excerpt and the performance documentation will be displayed.