The Beyoğlu Culture Route Festival launched with a special event held in front of the Atatürk Cultural Centre. FOTOMARATON opened with the Minister of Culture and Tourism Mehmet Nuri Ersoy in attendance and the participation of 1,500 photographers from all over Türkiye, delivering the festival excitement to Taksim Square. Running through June 12, the Beyoğlu Culture Route Festival brings 4,953 artists together with İstanbul residents and visitors in more than 1,500 events.
Organized by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, the Beyoğlu Cultural Route Festival kicked off at the Atatürk Cultural Centre with FOTOMARATON, attended by fifteen hundred photographers from all over Türkiye. Thousands of photographers gathered in front of the Atatürk Cultural Centre to photograph the Beyoğlu Culture Route, depicting Taksim Square in colourful images. The event took place with the participation of Minister of Culture and Tourism Mehmet Nuri Ersoy.
The six-hour FOTOMARATON, realized by the Photography Organizations Association, started with an enthusiastic cortege on İstiklal Street. Within the scope of the event, amateur and professional photography enthusiasts competed across three different themes determined at the Atatürk Cultural Centre, Şişhane and Galataport points. At the conclusion of FOTOMARATON, the top three winners were awarded phones and earphones at the Galataport location.
Fotomarathon Will Contribute to Tourism
FOTOMARATON, the photo marathon, is a fun, competitive event in which participants take a series of photos within a set time and within the framework of the themes described at the starting points.
Photographers who participate in the photo marathons are limited to using only digital cameras, smartphones, and tablets. Participants are not permitted to modify their photographs with photo editing programs such as Photoshop.
FOTOMARATON, held as part of the Beyoğlu Culture Route Festival, is expected to provide an important contribution to regional tourism by drawing attention to the cultural heritage of İstanbul via the art of photography.
More than 1,500 Events Through June 12
The Beyoğlu Culture Route Festival, bringing İstanbul’s vibrant art and culture scene to the world stage, will run through June 12 and host more than fifteen hundred events. The festival features three outdoor stages and fifteen street stages as well as four street events, amplifying the festival excitement and enthusiasm throughout the city. Taking place in forty venues and sixty-two halls, the events are organized in conjunction with fifty-three culture and art institution stakeholders and feature the participation of 4,953 local and foreign artists who are veterans in their fields. The festival brings together İstanbul’s diverse population and people of all ages with the unifying power of art.
The Beyoğlu Culture Route Festival takes place along the 4.1-kilometer Beyoğlu Culture Route, from Atatürk Cultural Centre to Galataport. The venues are as follows:
The Atatürk Cultural Centre, Akbank Art, Academy Beyoğlu, Hope Alkazar, the İstanbul Cinema Museum, the Beyoğlu Municipality İstiklal Art Gallery, Grand Pera Emek Stage, Grand Pera Cercle d’Orient, the French Cultural Centre, Galata Tower, Galata Mevlevi House, Galataport, Garibaldi Stage, Koç University Anamed, İstanbul Modern, the Pera Museum, Salt Galata, Salt Beyoğlu, Tarık Zafer Tunaya Cultural Centre, Tophane-i Amirane, Yapı Kredi Culture and Art Centre, Tomtom Kırmızı, Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University Painting and Sculpture Museum, the Historical Taksim Maksim Stage, the Taksim Mosque Cultural Centre, the Mehmet Akif Ersoy Memorial House, Burhan Doğançay Museum, the Italian Cultural Centre, and Saint Benoit French High School.
Global Luminaries Entertain İstanbullus
The Beyoğlu Culture Route Festival features a variety of events, including concerts, exhibitions, and interviews, as well as children’s workshops, films screenings, and theatre and opera performances. In addition, the festival offers outdoor concerts.
The festival concert series debuts at the Atatürk Cultural Centre and features Greek musician Glykeria, among the world’s most prominent performers of Rebetiko music.
The Sinan Opera, composed under the guidance of the President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, premiered at last year’s Beyoğlu Culture Route Festival. The opera returns to the AKM stage for this year’s festivities.
The Barcelona Gipsy Balkan Orchestra, interpreting traditional Roma and Eastern European music for international audiences, will perform during the festival, as will Dhaffer Youssef, the Tunisian oud master who fuses jazz, electronic music, and rhythms from India, among others.
In addition, the acclaimed Hungarian pianist János Balázs performs in Türkiye for the first time. The concert commemorates the 175th anniversary of the visit of Hungarian composer Franz Liszt to İstanbul.Streets and Squares Become Stages
During the Beyoğlu Culture Route Festival, stages in streets and squares bring the festival atmosphere to the city’s public spaces. Performances and other events will take place at the Galata Tower, Talimhane, Narmanlı Han, İstiklal, French Street, Tomtom Street, Odakule, Tünel, the Karaköy Ferry Terminal and many other venues through June 12.
The Şişhane Square Open Stage will feature Sakiler, İncesaz, Melek Mosso, Ceylan Ertem, Jabber, Deeprise, Sattas, Metin Özülkü, Yeni Türkü, Gripin, Marsis & Şiar and Karsu.
The Türk Telekom Open-Air Stage, established specifically for the festival at the Atatürk Cultural Centre, will host free concerts throughout the day. Türkiye’s most popular singers and bands, including Mazhar Alanson, Can Bonomo, Yedinci Ev, Elif Buse Doğan, Fatma Turgut, and many others will perform at the Türk Telekom Open-Air Stage.
The Galataport İstanbul Clock Tower Square, home to the 19th-century Tophane Clock Tower, will also feature a free concert series. Performers include İrem Derici, Oğuzhan Koç, Gökhan Türkmen, Murat Dalkılıç, Rafet El Roman, Simge Sağın and Murat Boz.
A Range of Exhibitions from Traditional to Digital Art
During the festival, art lovers can enjoy a plethora of special exhibitions in Beyoğlu, many showcasing Turkish artists. Internationally renowned artist Refik Anadol will exhibit “Rumi Dreams”, inspired by the Mevlâna, at the AKM Theatre Foyer. Painter and academician Hüsamettin Koçan brings his most prominent pieces to the AKM Gallery in the exhibition, “The Thorn on My Foot”, which traces the artist’s lifetime of creation. Türkiye’s first female ceramic artist, Fürayya Koral, is featured in the TBMM Collection at Galataport.