The Atelier takes the viewer to a specific Turkish flag manufacturing shop in Istanbul, where the audience is introduced to a few workers making flags amidst their employers. What starts as a tour of the technical process at a modest workshop unfolds into an age-old practice of transforming a simple piece of fabric into a sacred symbol. In this work, Hasan Özgür Top takes the pulse of popular opinion by making this small, independent company’s foreign trade relations visible. A subtle yet important shift exposes economic ties with the Kurdistan Democratic Party, the Kurdish party in Iraq, even though supporting Iraqi Kurds stands against Turkish nationalist ideals. The Atelier also brings to light the use of the growing Syrian workforce in Turkey, and examines the production of the most significant symbol of Turkish nationalism by immigrants working in precarious conditions.
· Single channel video
· 00:18:44
· Full HD
· Color
· Sound
Project Assistant:
Deniz Edemir
English Translation:
Payan Ece Özçetin
Spanish Translation:
Daniela Moscoso
EDU Translation
With Support From:
Thanks to:
Hanife Top
Mari Spirito
Özge İnal
Ezgi Akyol
Jimena Gonzalez
