Loft Art, an art space that opens its doors to independent artists, is hosting the 3rd edition of its annual prestigious exhibitions, honoring master artists.

 Loft Art is preparing to welcome art lovers at its Beşiktaş Nisbetiye On location in Istanbul with its new prestigious exhibition, “Songs Within Me.” The exhibition, which will be free to visit until December 1st, focuses on inner and outer conflicts, as well as the process of personal and collective memories transforming into metaphors.

 As part of Akfen Holding’s social responsibility project, Loft Art operates with a mission to provide space for independent artists. The gallery is bringing the 3rd edition of its prestigious annual exhibition series to art enthusiasts. Starting from Wednesday, October 2nd, the “Songs Within Me” exhibition will be open at Loft Art’s Nisbetiye On location, featuring works from renowned independent female artist Nazan Azeri, including paintings, photography, and video art.

Curated by Nergis Abıyeva, the exhibition explores connections in terms of thematic unity and color iconography, while also highlighting the strong links between Nazan Azeri’s academic work and her art practice.

Nazan Azeri, whose works will be featured in the “Songs Within Me” exhibition at Loft Art, continues her artistic practice through assemblage, staged photography, video art, and painting. Her works focus on inner and outer conflicts, as well as the transformation of personal and collective memories into metaphors.

The exhibition also includes works that will meet the public for the first time. “Songs Within Me” makes visible the relationships between Azeri’s “Forgotten Time and Now” series, which she began in Ayvalık in the summer of 2021 and has continued in various forms until the present, and her earlier works.

 LOFT ART CONTINUES TO HOST ESTEEMED ARTISTS WITH ITS PRESTIGE EXHIBITION SERIES

 Loft Art is Akfen Holding’s first project in the field of art, aimed at providing space for independent artists from various disciplines. It supports young artists and promotes equality of opportunity in the art world. As part of its Prestige Exhibition Series, Loft Art hosts annual exhibitions that bring together prominent artists with the art community.

In previous editions of its Prestige Exhibition Series, Loft Art has hosted renowned artists like Muzaffer Akyol and Gaye Su Akyol with the exhibition titled “Disobedient Roots – The Immortal Tree Resists,” and recently, the late Mehmet Güleryüz, one of the pioneers of expressionism in Turkish Art History.

 About the Artist Nazan Azeri

 Born in 1953, Nazan Azeri initially pursued a legal career after graduating from Istanbul University Faculty of Law. However, she later decided to shift her focus to art and began her art education at the Faculty of Fine Arts, Marmara University in 1989. She completed her master’s thesis, “First Generation Female Painters in the Westernization Movements,” in 1996, and earned a proficiency in art degree in 2000 with her thesis, “Playfulness in Visual Arts – Renaissance, Dada, Surrealism.” Azeri has taught at Beykent University and Marmara University’s Fine Arts faculties.

Azeri has held solo exhibitions at Karşı Sanat Çalışmaları, Mine Art Gallery, Marmara University’s Cumhuriyet Museum, and CDA Projects. Her group exhibitions have included notable shows such as “Country Focus-Turkish Pavilion” at NordArt 2023 in Büdelsdorf, “At the End of the Day” at Odunpazarı Modern Museum, “Contraviolencias” in Spain, and “Istanbul Next Wave” at the Akademie der Künste in Berlin. Since the 2000s, she has produced works in painting, photography, video, performance, and installation.

 About the Curator

 Nergis Abıyeva is currently pursuing her Ph.D. in Art History at Istanbul Technical University. She earned her bachelor’s degree in Art History from MSGSÜ and the Brera Academy in Milan. She completed her master’s degree at MSGSÜ with her thesis titled “The Art and Life of Tiraje Dikmen.”

Among the recent group exhibitions she curated are “Artificial Nature” (Quick Art Space, 2023), “Mental Imaginations of Nonexistent Things” (Summart, 2022), and “Another Atlas of Female Artists” (Tophane-i Amire Culture and Art Center, 2022). In 2023, she curated solo exhibitions including Gülçin Aksoy’s “Badge of Compassion” (Merdiven Art Space) and Benal Dikmen’s “Women of Troy” and “The Dual Life of Helen” (Troy Museum, Manfred Osman Library).