September in Istanbul is no ordinary month. With exhibitions, a major museum opening as well as the city's biennial, among the highlights, it's enough to fill anyone's art calendar. Istanbul's art scene is experiencing a boom at the moment. But is it sustainable?
From buckets to brooms and even items headed for the rubbish bin. Music group Embatucadores turns what would otherwise be junk, into musical instruments. The streets of São Paulo, Avenida Paulista. One of the city's most culturally and politically alive hotspots, it's the place where the band seamlessly fuse body beats, a variety of voices and unusual instruments to make the most unique of musical hybrids.
Oscar season is now underway, with the Venice Film Festival drawing to a close and the Toronto Film Festival kicks into high gear. The 44th edition of the event is -once again- fueled by star-power. Bringing both high drama and genre movie fare under one roof. This year's lineup includes a slew of films based on real people including Rene Zellweger's Judy Garland biopic 'Judy', 'Harriet'; the life story of African-American activist Harriet Tubman. And 'A Beautiful Day in the Neighbourhood' starring Tom Hanks as children's TV host Mr. Rogers.
The way the majority of us live our daily lives can and is having a detrimental impact on the natural environment around us. But while world leaders continue to fight over how best to solve these issues, a group of activists and artists on the Turkish island of Heybeliada are doing something about it. And as Showcase's Salome van Zyl tells that they are finding a unique way to tackle marine pollution with their own bare hands.
The world's oldest movie exchange, the Venice International Film Festival has just wrapped up its 76th edition. Along with Cannes and Berlin, Venice is part of what's known as the "big three". But at this year's event, there were some unexpected results that surprised if not shocked many in the movie world.
Esin Kucuktepepinar, Film Critic and Advisor at International Istanbul Film Festival 02:15
Showcase's Nursena Tuter takes on a bookish journey to discover the reading habits of Istanbul while she visits some of the most famous libraries in the city. She interviews the librarians and learns more about the history of these buildings that house endless amount of knowledge and imagination. She also starts a discussion on what kind of relationship we now have with reading.
Slave trade influenced the global music scene on a vast scale. One example is capoeira; a martial art form, combining self-defence, acrobatics, dance and song. It was used by Brazilian slaves to disguise the fact that they were practising fight moves. Once outlawed, capoeira now transformed itself into a staple of Brazilian popular culture. And one thing is key to this practice. It is called berimbau, a wooden percussion instrument described as a musical bow with ancient African origins.
Back in 2008, one of artist Jeff Koons's famed balloon animals fell and shattered into pieces. Normally it would have gone through a restoration and reappraisal process and then been put back on the market as soon as possible. But if the damage to the work costs more to repair than its value, the insurance company declares it a total loss, then acquires the piece and sells it as "salvage". And that's exactly how Koons's famous steel dog joined a warehouse of hundreds of other damaged artworks. But thanks to New York's Salvage Art Institute these pieces of "zombie art" are finding new life.
Elka Krajewska, President and Founder of Salvage Art Institute 00:43
#SalvageArt #ElkaKrajewska #JeffKoon
6 min
About Showcase
From the publisher's feed
Keeping you up to beat with the latest on the global arts and culture scene.