:mentalKLINIK is a Brussels-based artist duo from Istanbul composed of Yasemin Baydar and Birol Demir who began their collaborative practice in 1998.
:mentalKLINIK strides with undisguised dexterity the invisible political strategies and the social dynamics by ultra-contemporary devices of an apparent lightness. Like a discoball, :mentalKLINIK shows are a selection of their multifaceted approach on their universe. Resisting to the limitations of a single vocabulary or style, their world is a playful one full of hedonistic appeal which can be experienced as festive and glamourous but also surprising as one approaches to discover with a closer view an underlying violence suggestive of a bad trip after party or a creepy beginning of the end. Their works shift between emotional and robotic attitudes. Artist duo reclaim the sparkling and authoritative visual language of the media and night spheres in a climate of sensory hyperstimulation engendered by multiple neons, slogans, light beams, mirror balls and confetti while playing with our unanimous attraction to objects glittering and seductive. It is all the work of encryption to which they summon us, between the true and the false, the artificial and the superficial, as if everything were a case of falsification.
:mentalKLINIK has an open laboratory approach to process, production, roles, conception and presentation. Their works are a mix of oxymora and paradoxes, darkly humorous, self-contained range from immersive time based installations to sculptures and objects that thwart categorisation.
:mentalKLINIK’s experimental approach has been praised on numerous international exhibitions including Bitter Medicine#01 (Museum of Contemporary Art in Belgrade ), curated by Carl de Smet, Bitter Medicine#02 (Borusan Contemporary, Istanbul), curated by Necmi Sonmez, ‘FreshCut’ (MAK, Vienna_ Austrian Museum of applied Arts / Contemporary Art) curated by Marlies Wirth and ‘Co-operation Would be Highly Appreciated’ Exhibition at SCAD Museum GA, USA, curated by Storm Janse van Rensburg. They have participated in numerous international exhibitions including Istanbul Modern-Rotterdam at Boijmans van Beuningen Museum (Rotterdam, 2012); Izmir Triennial of Contemporary Art (Izmir, 2010); and Tomorrow, Now (MUDAM, Luxembourg, 2007). They opened an introspective at La Patinoire Royale, Brussels curated by Jerome Sans in 2018. They have had two major solo shows at Galerist, Istanbul titled That’s Fucking Awesome curated by Jerome Sans (2011) and rABBIThOLE (2009); and a solo show at Gallery Isabelle van den Eynde Thank You For your Cooperation (2014), a solo show in Belgrade in 2018 titled ‘Catastrophically Gorgeous’ at Eugster II Belgrade, curated by Yasmina Reggad.
Education
Yasemin Baydar (b. Istanbul, Turkey)
1990
2002
Mimar Sinan University, Faculty of Fine Arts. Istanbul, Turkey
Birol Demir (b. Ankara, Turkey)
1986
1990
Mimar Sinan University, Faculty of Fine Arts. Istanbul, Turkey
Solo Exhibitions
2024
GENERATED DREAMS. Sabrina Amrani. Madrid, Spain.
2023
SPECTRES OF FUTURE. Espace Triphase. Comisariado por Zoé Van den Boogaerde. Bruselas, Bélgica.
2023
SPECTRES OF FUTURE. DOEL FESTIVAL. Curated by Zoé Van den Boogaerd. Doel, Belgium.
2023
PARADISE ON SALE. DİRİMART. İstanbul, Turkey.
2022
HYPERMOODY. Sabrina Amrani. Madrid, Spain.
2020
Bitter Medicine #02. Borusan Contemporary, Istanbul, Turkey.
2020
Bitter Medicine #01. Museum of Contemporary Art in Belgrade (MOCAB), Belgrade, Serbia. Curated by Carl de Smedt.
2018
Catastrophically Gorgeous. Eugster II Belgrad. Belgrade, Serbia. Curated by Yasmina Reggad.
2018
Obnoxiously Happy. La Patinoire Royale. Brussels, Belgium. Curated by Jerome Sans.
2017
Truish. Gallery Isabelle van den Eynde. Dubai, UAE.
2017
Self-Seeking Superficials. Louise Alexander Gallery. Porto Cevro, Italy.
2015
83% Satisfaction Guaranteed. Louise Alexander Gallery. Porto Cevro, Italy.
2015
Co-Operation Would Be Highly Appreciated. SCAD, Museum of Art Savannah. Savannah, Georgia, USA. Curated by Storm Janse van Rensburg
2014
Thank You For Your Cooperation. Gallery Isabelle Van Den Eynde. Dubai, UAE.
2013
MagmaonthemountainPerformative Dinner. Istanbul Modern. İstanbul, Turkey.
2013
Freshcut, Performative Installation. MAK NITE Lab, MAK Museum of Applied Arts. Zurich, Switzerland. Curated by Marlies Wirth.
2012
Encounter. The Royal Academy In The Middle East. Katara, Doha, Qatar. Curated by Kathy Battista.
2012
Magmaonthemountain, Performative Dinner. Paris, France,.
2012
Terribly Jolly, Real-time Sculpture. Istanbul, Turkey.
2012
Happilydizzy. Paris, France.
2011
That’s Fucking Awesome. Galerist Hasköy. Istanbul, Turkey. Curated by Jerome Sans
2010
Silence_Storm. Port Izmir2, International Triennial of Contemporary Art. Izmir, Turkey. Curated by Necmi Sonmez
2009
Rabbithtole. Galerist. Istanbul, Turkey
2009
PUFF. Art Basel 40, Art Unlimited Basel. Basel, Switzerland.
2009
Tagcloud. :mentalKLINIK Space. Istanbul, Turkey
2008
Tagcloud. :mentalKLINIK Space. Istanbul, Turkey
2007
BINARYOCCUPATIONS PHASE1. SURFACE.:mentalKLINIK Space. Istanbul, Turkey.
2004
~SELF01. MUDAM, Luxembourg (Musee d’Art Moderne Grand-Duc Jean). Luxembourg. Curated by Marie-Claude Beaud
2003
[COPY]. :mentalKLINIK Space. Istanbul, Turkey. Curated by :mentalKLINIK.
Group Exhibitions
2024
Y SI MADRID FUERA MI CASA. Sabrina Amrani. Curated by Joël Andrianomearisoa. Madrid, Spain.
2023
Boulevard Jacqmain. Nadine. Curated by Olivia Ardui. Brussels, Belgium.
2022
Biennale des Imaginaires Numériques. Friche la Belle de Mai. Marseille, France.
2022
Shake your body. Lago/Algo. Curated by Jérôme Sans. Ciudad de México, México.
2021
Signs of the Times. Apalazzo Gallery. Brescia, Italy. Curated by Jérôme Sans.
2021
Tiger in a Tropical Storm. Louise Alexander. Porto Cevro, Italy.
2021
Out of Place. Isabelle van den Eynde. Dubai, UAE.
2021
Ticker Tape, Project by Cel Crabeels. NICC. Antwerp and Brussels, Belgium.
2021
La Máquina Loca. Teatros del Canal. Madrid, Spain. Curated by Charles Carcopino.
2021
BEYOND ALL YOU ARE MINE. Hakanto Contemporary, Antananarivo, Madagascar.
2020
Ver Versus Ver II.Sabrina Amrani Gallery. Madrid, Spain.
2020
Ver Versus Ver. Sabrina Amrani Gallery. Madrid, Spain.
2020
Here We Reach All The Dreams Of The World. Hakanto Contemporary. Antananarivo, Madagascar. A project by Joël Andrianomearisoa.
2019
Almost Home. RX Gallery. Paris France. A project by Joël Andrianomearisoa.
2019
Racing The Galaxy. Astana Art Show. Astana, Kazakhstan. Curated by Jerome Sans & Dina Baitassova.
2019
Eldorama. Tripostal. Lille, France. Curated by Jerome Sans, Jean–Max Colard and Isabelle Bernini
2019
Golden Room. Palais des Beaux-Arts. Lille, France. Curated by Jerome Sans, Jean – Max Colard and Isabelle Bernini
2019
Sunday Morning. Galerist. Istanbul, Turkey. Curated by Nicole O’Rourke
2018
The Thirtieth Year. Krizinger Projekte. Wien, Austria. Curated by Jerome Sans.
2018
Evolve. Galery A. Izmir, Turkey. Curated by Necmi Sonmez.
2017
Summer In The City. La Patinoire Royal. Brussels, Belgium.
2017
Good Printing. Gallery Isabelle Van Den Eynde. Dubai, UAE. Curated by Yasmina Reggad.
2016
White Cube. Gallery Isabelle Van Den Eynde. Dubai, UAE. Curated by Amanda Abi Khalil.
2015
Time And Image. Greek Film Archive Museum. Athens, Greece. Curated by Christina Androulidaki.
2014
Entre Nosotros(Between us), Video art from the Middle East and North Africa in a global World. Etopia Centro de Arte y Tecnología. Zaragoza, Spain. Curated by Sabrina Amrani.
2014
Plurivocality. Istanbul Modern. Istanbul, Turkey. Curated by Levent Çalıkoğlu & Çelenk Bafra.
2014
Rock The Casbah.Group Show with Carpenters Workshop Gallery. Design Miami. Basel, Switzerland.
2012
Istanbul Modern. Rotterdam Boijmans Van Beuningen Museum. Rotterdam, Netherlands.
2011
B-34 Kulturk. Freie University. Berlin, Germany.
2011
30 Et Presque-Songes.Maison Revue Noire. Paris, France. Curated by Joël Andreanomearisoa.
2011
Dreams Of Art Spaces Collected. IGBK. Berlin, Germany.
2010
From Istanbul They Come.Kappatos Gallery. Athens, Greece. Curated by Eleftheria Tseliou.
2009
A Survey Of Turkish Art. Cuadro Fine Art Gallery. Dubai, UAE.
2007
Converted01, X-CUBE© locker. Tokyo, Japan. Curated by Eric van Hove.
2007
Give Joel A Gift, You Will Be Gifted.30 and Almost-Dreams Exhibition. Antanarivo, Madagascar. Curated by Joël Andreanomearisoa.
2007
FROZEN45, Tomorrow Now Exhibition. MUDAM (Musee d’Art Moderne Grand-Duc Jean). Luxembourg. Curated by Alexandra Midal & Bjorn Dahlström
2001
2002
{GAME}.:mentalKLINIK, Istanbul, Turkey. Curated by :mentalKLINIK
2000
(SLEEP).:mentalKLINIK Space, Istanbul, Turkey. Curated by :mentalKLINIK
Teaching/Lecturing/Residency
2018
2019
OBSCURE OBJECT, Workshop with Carl de Smet at Khalifa University, Art&Technology, Abu Dhabi
2018
2019
DOUBLE TROUBLE, Workshop at La Cambre with Nathalie Khan, Pierre Daras, Didier Vervaeren, Brussels, Belgium
2017
Residency at Performance Hub Belgrade Serbia
2015
Panel discussion with Scott Carter, :mentalKLINIK and Nari Ward moderated by Paul Lester. SCAD Museum of Art Savannah Georgia USA
2015
Lecture Series, SCAD, Savannah College of Art and Design Georgia USA.
2009
OBSCURE OBJECT, Workshop, Ecole Speciale d’Architecture, Paris, France Undisciplined State of Mind, Ecole Speciale d’Architecture, Paris, France
2009
PRESENT FUTURE, Panel discussion with Tül Akbal Süalp moderated by Fatoş Üstek at Tent, Rotterdam, Netherlands
2008
UNDISCIPLINED DESIGNING; the Theory and Practice of :mentalKLINIK, Studium Generale Rietveld Academie, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
2008
WORKSHOP at DAI-Week with Barbara Visser, directed by Gabrielle Schleijpen, Dutch Art Institute, Enschede, Netherlands
2008
ÇAGDAS SANAT KONUSMALARI 2, Çagdas Sanatta Sivil Olusumlar ve Inisiyatifler, panel discussion with Tül Akbal Süalp moderated by Levent Çalıkoğlu at Yapi Kredi Cultural Center, Istanbul, Turkey
2008
NON-DETAIL, Panel at Istanbul Technical University, Istanbul, Turkey
2008
NON-DETAIL – WORKSHOP with Bas van Beek at Istanbul Technical University, Istanbul, Turkey
2008
BiR ÇALISMA BİÇİMİ OLARAK TASARIM,Moderated by Levent Çalıkoğlu Istanbul Modern. Istanbul, Turkey
2008
GÜNCEL SANAT TARTISMALARI: Bagımsız Bünyeler, Panel discussion with Hazavuzu, Moderated by Seçil Yersel. Project by Azra Tüzünoğlu at Mimar Sinan University, Istanbul, Turkey
2007
:MENTALKLINIK STATEMENT,Dreams Of Art Spaces Collected, The International Gesellschaft Der Bildenden Künste (IGBK) in co-operation with Deutscher Künstlerbund, Berlin, Germany
2004
CHAT AT MUDAM, Camp de Base, Musée D’Art Moderne Grand-Duc Jean / Luxembourg

Fairs
2024
Art Basel Hong Kong. Sabrina Amrani. Hong Kong.
2024
Art Dubai. Sabrina Amrani. Dubai, UAE.
2023
Abu Dhabi Art. Sabrina Amrani. Abu Dhabi, UAE.
2023
Art Düsseldorf. Sabrina Amrani. Düsseldorf, Germany.
2023
Art Dubai. Sabrina Amrani. Dubai, UAE.
2023
ARCOmadrid. Sabrina Amrani. Madrid, Spain.
2022
ARCOlisboa. Sabrina Amrani. Lisbon, Portugal.
2022
Art Düsseldorf. Sabrina Amrani. Düsseldorf, Germany.
2022
ARCOmadrid. Sabrina Amrani. Madrid, Spain.
2021
ARCOmadrid. Sabrina Amrani. Madrid, Spain.
2021
SPARK Art Fair. Sabrina Amrani. Vienna, Austria.

Public collections
Fundação Leal Rios. Lisbon, Portugal.
Colección Alma Colectiva. Guadalajara, Mexico.

Publications / Bibliography
2018
OBNOXIOUSLY HAPPY. Interview by Jerome Sans,Published by La Patinoire Royale.ISBN 978-2-930737-19-5.
2018
The Thirtieth Year.Published by Krinzinger Projekte.
2018
Şiir Her Yerdedir, İLHAN BERK 100 Yaşında.Edited by Necmi Sönmez,Pubished by Yapı Kredi Yayınları. ISBN: 978-975-08-4372-3
2014
Plurivocality.By Levent Çalıkoğlu and Çelenk Bafra. Pubished by Istanbul Modern Art Museum, Istanbul.
2015
83% Satisfaction Guaranteed. Designed by :mentalKLINIK,Published by Louise Alexander Gallery.
2014
Plurivocality. Published by Istanbul Modern Art Museum, ISBN 10: 9756167718 / ISBN 13: 9789756167717
2012
That’s Fucking Awesome. Designed by :mentalKLINIK, Published by GALERIST, Istanbul, ISBN: 978-97592510-9-3
2007
User’s Manual, Contemporary Art In Turkey 1986-2006. Editor Halil Alt ndere, Süreyya Evren, Published by art-ist + revolver books, ISBN: 978-3-86588-392-6
2004
self 01. Editor: Birhan Keskin, Published by :mentalKLINIK, MUDAM
2004
wanting book odd notebook. Published by :mentalKLINIK, MUDAM, ISBN: 9758614029
2004
contents. Conceived by Yasemin Baydar and Birol Demir, Published by :mentalKLINIK, MUDAM, ISBN: 9758614037
2002
{oyun} game. Editor Tül Akbal Süalp, Published by :mentalKLINIK. ISBN: 9758614010
2001
(uyku) sleep. Editor Birhan Keskin, Published by :mentalKLINIK, ISBN: 9758614002
1997
On Life, beauty, Translations and Other Difficulties.Istanbul International Biennial. Editor Emre Baykal, Published by Istanbul Foundation For Culture and Arts, ISBN: 975-7363-03-0
1997
Kültür ein Gender– Projekt aus stanbul. Published by Shedhalle Zürich, Die Autorinnen. ISBN: 3-907829-06-9