Seminar: Institute as an Art and Design Practice
Speakers: Avşar Gürpınar ve Cansu Cürgen
Time: 6:00-7:30 pm
In this seminar, academicians and artists Cansu Cürgen and Avşar Gürpınar will talk about the research and production practices of the Ambiguous Standards Institute [MSE], which they have founded. Tracing ambiguous standards in everyday life, MSE is a design-oriented research project that focuses on curatorial and artistic procedures that seek radical ways of knowledge production, beyond the repetition of inherited theories of knowledge.Since its establishment in 2014, MSE has made its work public in various formats such as design biennials, international exhibitions and other institutions, conceptual art works, radio and television programs, and printed works. Beyond being an art and design practice, MSE works as an alternative learning and conceptualization environment.
About Avşar Gürpınar
Assoc. Prof. Avşar Gürpınar is a scholar, designer, and co-founder of the Ambiguous Standards Institute. He holds a B.Sc. degree in Electrical Engineering and M.Sc. and PhD in Industrial Product Design. In 2021, The Arts Council England endorsed him as an exceptional talent in arts and culture. Avşar is working as a lecturer in the School of Design and Creative Arts at Loughborough University. He is a member of the Design Research Society, a reviewer for The Design Journal, and an occasional critic for DAMN and MONU magazines. His research focuses on critical design, cultural studies, and art and design history. His recent works include his solo exhibition ‘It Was Your Toy that Was Broken’ in Kıraathane Istanbul in 2021 and The Ambiguous Standards Institute’s solo exhibition held at the Art Institute of Chicago in 2021. The Art Institute of Chicago has acquired several pieces of his work for the Ambiguous Standards Institute for their permanent collection.
About Cansu Cürgen
Dr Cansu Cürgen is an architectural designer, scholar, and co-founder of the Ambiguous Standards Institute. She lives and works in the UK and teaches at Loughborough University School of Architecture, Building, and Civil Engineering. She holds a PhD, an MSc, and a BSc in Architecture. Her research interests include the economypolitics of design; daily life studies, urban interventions; open-source design practices; the history of design standards; and theory and criticism of modern architecture. Her design-research projects have been exhibited in numerous design weeks and biennials internationally. Some of her recent works are The Ambiguous Standards Institute’s solo exhibition, held at the Art Institute of Chicago in 2021, and her editorial and associate-curatorial roles in the “The Shift | Vardiya” project for the Pavilion of Turkey at the 16th Architecture Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia. She co-edited and co-authored the 4-volume project book Vardiya | The Shift, published by Yapı Kredi Publications, Istanbul, 2018. The Art Institute of Chicago has acquired several pieces of her work for the Ambiguous Standards Institute for their permanent collection.
* To learn conditions of participation in a single seminar, we would kindly ask you to send an e-mail to apply@curatingcontemporaryart.org address noting the required seminar details. Single seminar participation fee is 250 TL + Kdv.
* The program will take place on the online platform Zoom.