COALITION exhibition at the Institut Français d’Izmir

February 21 – April 26, 2025, 10am – 9pm

French Institute of Turkey in Izmir
Cumhuriyet Blv. No:152,
35220 Alsancak İzmir, Turkey

Today, the state of our ecosystems leaves us no choice but to be ecologically minded. At a time when soils are contaminated, forests asphyxiated, living organisms are collapsing, and climate change is spiraling out of control… Why can’t we preserve, care for and defend the Earth we share?

A new generation of artists, all from different backgrounds, is working to redress the balance. Describing, warning, acting, not in the illusion of saving the world, but in the hope of influencing behavior, of weaving new collective narratives, developing common heritages and heritage, conscious, positive and necessary frameworks, to bring about more virtuous behavior, new alliances between the different kingdoms of the living, and to defend more than ever what we hold dear: the freedom and beauty of the world as we want it to continue to exist.

As if to gain a foothold in the face of the vertigo of collapse, these artists draw the contours of what is slipping away, giving a face to the Anthropocene, making perceptible the hidden pollution, the destruction of ecosystems and the invisible suffering. Far from fatalism, they are building the conditions for resistance and resilience, honouring the words of the poet Hölderlin: “where peril grows, that which saves also grows”.

Like a river that grows and makes its bed by embracing the diversity of its nourishing lands and the flows that feed it, these artists amplify our sensitive relationship with the world by constantly renewing practices, knowledge and know-how. From political action to restorative practices, from the arts of the hand to the arts of the earth, in connection with thinkers, scientists, citizens and activists who seek, transform and act, art has the power not only to alert and denounce, but also to repair and connect through gestures of care and sharing. It contributes to the growth of this COALITION, this community of attentions and actions that are essential if everyone is to find the inspiration, the means and the courage to implement transformations towards a more sustainable and fairer world.

Curated by : Lauranne Germond, co-founder and director of COAL and Sara Dufour, COAL Program Director

Artists participating in the exhibition: Ackroyd & Harvey (UK), Brandon Ballengée (US), Lélia Demoisy (FR), Beya Gille Gacha (FR), Camille Goujon (FR), Suzanne Husky (FR), Shivay La Multiple (FR/NC), Lucy + Jorge Orta (UK/AR), Stéfane Perraud et Aram Kebabdjian (FR), Erik Samakh (FR), Momoko Seto (JP), Michael Wang (US).

With the support of all the teams at the Institut français de Turquie.

COAL and the Institut français de Turquie à Izmir would like to sincerely thank all the artists taking part in the exhibition.

We would also like to extend our warmest thanks to the COAL Prize partners:

Ministry of Culture
the French Office for Biodiversity (OFB)
Fondation LAccolade
François Sommer Foundation

Lenders : The artists, Galerie Alain Gutharc, Drawing Lab Paris