Suzanne Lacy: Together/ Togæther
Sabancı University Sakıp Sabancı Museum, Istanbul, Turkey, 2025
Suzanne Lacy's first exhibition in Turkey presents a selection from the long-standing body of work of this pioneering artist, who transforms participation, solidarity, and collaborative learning into an art form. In her performances, which bring together numerous volunteers from various segments of society, particularly women and youth, from various countries around the world, creating "live tableaux," the artist explores issues such as identity, freedom, various forms of violence, economic hardship, and aging. With her exhibition "Togæther," she invites the audience to reflect on questions at the intersection of art and life, art and politics, aesthetics, and ethics. Lacy's performances, which span a wide period and bring together people from all walks of life, acquire a new artistic quality through their diverse exhibition formats when they enter institutional spaces such as museums. Her exhibition at SSM brings the emotional memory of these performances, each performed in public spaces with hundreds of volunteers and thousands of spectators, to the museum through video installations.
Bringing together works from different periods of Suzanne Lacy's career, the exhibition features Whisper, Waves, Wind (1983-1984) and The Crystal Veil (1985-1987) focusing on the personal and social experiences of aging and aging women. Between the Door and the Street (2013) engages women from different generations in conversations surrounding issues such as education, employment, family, and migration. With Your Own Hand (2014-2015) addresses the phenomenon of violence against women worldwide through men gathered in a bullring in Ecuador to read letters from over ten thousand women about violence. The exhibition also features early examples of Lacy's feminist art, which emerged as a stance in the American art scene of the 1970s. In this respect, the selection at SSM comprehensively presents the artist's work spanning over half a century.
Curated by Dr. Ahu Antmen.
Images by Canberk Ulusan. Courtesy of Sabancı University Sakıp Sabancı Museum.