LABOUR OF LOVE

Galerist celebrates its 25th anniversary with Labour of Love, an exhibition bringing together nearly 50 artists whose practices have shaped the gallery’s identity since its founding. Opening on 16 September 2026, the exhibition brings together significant works that have marked Galerist’s history alongside newly produced works, tracing artistic affinities, long-standing relationships and shared commitments.

Founded in 2001, Galerist has developed its programme around long-term relationships with artists from different generations, intellectual exchange and a sustained dialogue grounded in continuity. Across nearly 200 exhibitions, the gallery has provided space for emerging artistic practices while supporting the development of established ones; it has safeguarded artistic legacies and contributed to the international visibility of contemporary art from Türkiye.

Bringing together different generations, media and artistic approaches, with a commitment to equal gender representation, this artist-centred approach forms the foundation of Galerist’s 25-year history.

Rather than looking at this history through its archive, Labour of Love opens up a reflection on Galerist through the works of the artists who have shaped it. The works brought together in the exhibition can be read as self-portraits within the artists’ individual practices, while collectively forming a portrait of Galerist itself. Here, the notion of the self-portrait extends beyond an image representing the artist, encompassing recurring forms, material choices, gestures, symbols, methods of production and the conceptual concerns that define an artistic practice.

The title of the exhibition brings into focus the often invisible labour, care, commitment and belief that lie at the heart of artistic production and long-standing relationships. It also points to the sustained effort required to build a gallery over time, through relationships with artists, institutions, art professionals, collectors and audiences. Rather than commemorating a completed past, the exhibition celebrates a story that is still being written; while honouring twenty-five years of Galerist’s journey, it also looks towards the future made possible by these enduring relationships.

Labour of Love brings together works by :mentalKLINIK, Hüseyin Bahri Alptekin, Haluk Akakçe, Yeşim Akdeniz, Rasim Aksan, Francesco Albano, Semiha Berksoy, Hera Büyüktaşcıyan, Taner Ceylan, Hussein Chalayan, Michael Craig-Martin, Ergin Çavuşoğlu, İpek Duben, Ayşe Erkmen, Leylâ Gediz, Kendell Geers, Anton Henning, Mustafa Hulusi, İdil İlkin, Merve İşeri, Şahin Kaygun, Nuri Kuzucan, Arik Levy, Merve Morkoç, Youssef Nabil, Julian Opie, Lara Ögel, Serkan Özkaya, Güçlü Öztekin, Seza Paker, Thomas Ruff, Sarkis, Yusuf Sevinçli, Erinç Seymen, Arslan Sükan, Murat Şahinler, Ali Emir Tapan, Evren Tekinoktay, Ayça Telgeren, Defne Tesal, Margaret R. Thompson, TUNCA, Gavin Turk, Elif Uras, Viron Erol Vert, Erwin Wurm, Nil Yalter, Burcu Yağcıoğlu and Nazım Ünal Yılmaz.

The exhibition will be on view at Galerist from 16 September to 7 November 2026.