Sinopale 3 (3. International Sinop Biennial)
“Hidden Memories, Lost Traces”
The third edition of Sinopale which will take place between August 14th-September 4th, 2010 is “Hidden Memories, Lost Traces”.
In order to hear the hidden stories of a city, one has to experience the city. The invisible aspects of a city are revealed by the stories of the city. The sensation created by the stories related to a city is the same with the sensation of that city. If one has internalized the sensation of a city, s/he projects something relating to his/her home city to every city that s/he sees or relates, just as in the novel “Invisible Cities” by Italo Calvino. Globalisation, while seeming promising for such an expansion of meaning, ended up with the uniformisation of the city life, projects that tend to efface past stories and the spirit of a city. It enhances the dynamism of the unlimited production and unlimited consumption that have effaced all signs of the lived experience, thus the uniqueness of a city has been forgotten.
Departing from the memory of the city, this conceptual framework, which has been envisioned for re-tackling the intelligence related to this living space together with its different dimensions, and evaluating the “information” obtained in an artistic form, intends to draw attention to that which is “spoken” and “unspoken” in this geography set to be “a transit area”.
If an artistic production which can explore and defend the lived aspects of the city which are yet invisible and reveal them, cultural utopias dating to the beginning of the globalisation could be enjoyed. The project aims to gather a “transportable memory” of the city in order to reveal hidden memories and lost traces thus stimulating memories of the artists as well. The actualization of this crucial period by means of arts will bring back memories and link with the present maybe unexpected singular events, thus allowing new readings of the process of change in European cities and actual events that take place in those cities.
Sinop has the characteristic of an isolated port city which has existed throughout ages. It has a loaded history and a loaded memory. The existence of a penitentiary where some of the prominent intellectuals of that period had to do time and its impacts is part of the collective memory of the city. Sinop has various disconnected structures in its fabric; historical buildings dating to various eras, workers who made a living in the American base and formed satellite cities… Sinop is isolated as an eastern bloc area yet positions itself within western alliance, it has once been a centre for intense weapon trade. Due to its geopolitical position the inhabitants of Sinop were/are engaged in contradictory political engagements. Black Sea region is a transit area between the geographical Europe and the political Europe where historical conflicts still take place. Actual energy policies and ecological problems which can be assessed in their historical context set this city in the agenda of current politics.
Sinopale 3 will deal with the artistic, creative works related to the expression of the “hidden memory” together with contrasts such as the “choice of the inhabitants” and the “choice of the governors” in integrity on “city, district, individual” basis. Through workshops, exhibitions, performances where “proposals for the future” will be discussed, Sinopale 3 attempts to make artists, designers, architects, cultural managers, tradesmen, local governors, educators, inhabitants and viewers cooperate at intellectual and operational level and work in a “participative-interactive” way.
Works that will be produced within the scope of Sinopale 3 will be displayed at various indoors and outdoors spaces at the city centre and some districts.