The first Gala Modern at Istanbul Modern's new museum building hosted a fundraising auction to support the arts

Artworks by 11 artists from Türkiye and around the world were featured in the fundraising auction run by Maya Portakal Bitargil. Making a call for the “We Meet” project, aimed at facilitating the engagement of 500 children and young people with special learning needs with art, the evening also included performances by the young musician INJI as well as Gökçe Bahadır and Emir Ersoy.

The eleventh Gala Modern was held on Saturday, December 16, 2023, for the first time at Istanbul Modern's new museum building, with the aim of supporting Istanbul Modern's exhibitions and educational programs.

Chair of the Board of Istanbul Modern Oya Eczacıbaşı said during her opening remarks of the evening, which was organized to provide support for the museum’s exhibitions and educational programs, “We are so delighted to host Gala Modern in our new museum building, which serves as a gift to our Republic on its 100th anniversary that we celebrate with great enthusiasm. In collaboration with our Ambassadors of Culture, we have been organizing Gala Modern with unwavering excitement since day one, which has gained an international recognition with the support of artists and guests from around the world.” Eczacıbaşı continued:

“Organized to support our museum’s exhibitions and educational programs, Gala Modern enabled us to introduce hundreds of thousands of children and young people to art. The 900,000 children and young people who have participated in educational programs at Istanbul Modern are now growing up as art enthusiasts, further enriching their lives with art. We continue to organize projects, educational programs, and art workshops for thousands of children with special learning needs to ensure equal opportunities.”

In her speech, Eczacıbaşı thanked Istanbul Modern’s Ambassadors of Culture, consisting of Maya Portakal Bitargil, Esra Ekmekçi Çalıcıoğlu, Banu Çarmıklı, Şeli Elvaşvili, Melkan Gürsel, Cem Hakko, Banu İpeker, Esra Özsüer, Suzan Sabancı, Okşan Atilla Sanön, and Rana Erkan Tabanca, for their continuous support to Gala Modern.

11 artists and 11 artwork at the Fundraising Auction

Rana Erkan Tabanca and Salih Bademci were the hosts of the night, during which a fundraising auction run by Maya Portakal Bitargil was carried out to raise funding for the museum’s exhibitions and educational programs. Also with Salih Bademci’s contributions, the Gala Modern Fundraising Auction brought together art enthusiasts with 11 artworks of artists from Türkiye and around the world. Works donated by Nevin Aladağ, Ali Alışır, Özlem Altın, Mohamed Bourouissa, Adnan Çoker, Olafur Eliasson, Tadashi Kawamata, Laure Prouvost, Imran Qureshi, Necla Rüzgar, and Elif Uras were featured in the Gala Modern Fundraising Auction.

Call for “We Meet” Project

Rana Erkan Tabanca and Salih Bademci also made a call during the event for “We Meet,” a project aimed at facilitating the engagement of 500 children and young people with special learning needs with art.

Gökçe Bahadır and Emir Ersoy were on stage

Following the performance by the young musician INJI, Gökçe Bahadır and Emir Ersoy took the stage, lifting the night with their music and shows.

Supporters of the first Gala Modern in the new museum building

At the first Gala Modern in the new museum building, Tabanlıoğlu Architects undertook the conceptual design, while dDf was responsible for the event design and organization. The co-supporters of the evening were Sanlorenzo’s Türkiye representative Trio Deniz and Rolex’s Istanbul representative Rhodium.