This installation by Günaydın during their SAHA residency features the word "MUSSAKHAN," rendered in metal using the bespoke typeface "Hamaset." Mounted on a form referencing a T-Wall Barrier mold structure commonly associated with separation and militarized landscapes, the sculpture evokes concrete barricades, highlighting tensions of physical and symbolic division. It was exhibited at the İstanbul Manufacturer Retail Center, resonating with themes of geopolitical and cultural fragmentation.
The First Passage of Konvolut: MUSAKHAN
(Produced as part of my residency at Saha Studio in Istanbul, Turkiye, 2024.)
MUSAKHAN anchors OPUS’s exploration in a profoundly historical and political context. Musakhan is a national Palestinian dish with sumac-spiced chicken, sweet onions, pine nuts, and taboon bread. More than a culinary tradition, it is a cultural signifier of home, resilience, and historical continuity. Within OPUS, Musakhan is not just food but a text; its preparation and consumption are a performance embedded in layers of meaning.
Powder-coated metal, 300 x 200 x 132 cm.
View from the "MUSSAKHAN " at IMÇ.
View from the "MUSSAKHAN " at IMÇ.
View from the "MUSSAKHAN " at IMÇ.