The beleaguered Istanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts (İKSV), organisers of the Turkish capital’s biennial, is hoping that announcement of the next edition’s title and theme will draw a line under almost two years of controversy.
Curator Christine Tohmé announced that her exhibition will be titled The Three-Legged Cat, taking in themes of self-preservation and futurity. ‘Resting on three legs from 2025 through 2027, the 18th Istanbul Biennial is thoroughly feline. It secures its footing by stretching in time, following a rhythm nourished by conversations, gymnastics, and incessant news streams,’ the press release states.
The first leg, running from 20 September to 23 November 2025, presents an exhibition with over 40 artists, alongside performances, screenings, and talks; the second leg, in 2026, is dedicated to creating an academy and collaborating with local initiatives on a series of public programmes. For the final part, in 2027, Tohmé says the biennial ‘leans on its third leg to rest, bringing together what has been encountered along the way through a final round of exhibitions and workshops’.
Tohmé took over the curatorial reins following intense criticism of İKSV’s decision-making process after the rejection of Defne Ayas as the original curator of what was supposed to be the 2024 edition. Instead they parachuted in Iwona Blazwick, herself part of the advisory board that had selected Ayas. In the face of the ensuing backlash – including the resignation of the other advisors and an artist boycott – the former director of London’s Whitechapel Gallery quit and the the show was postponed.
Curator Kevser Güler was subsequently appointed as the new director of the Istanbul Biennial, with Tohmé asked to oversee the latest edition in October last year.
