Curator Name: Esra Ozkan
Residency Dates: February – April 2024
Born: 1990
Hometown: Istanbul, Turkey
Lives & Works: Istanbul, Turkey
URL: https://www.esraozkan.net/
Education:
2018 – 2021 | Master of Arts Degree, Bilgi University, Istanbul
2012 – 2016 | Bachelor’s Degree in Art Management & Plastic Arts, Yeditepe University, Istanbul
Bio/Statement:
Esra Ozkan is an independent digital art curator based in Istanbul and London, known for her expertise in immersive and emerging technology art. Since 2011, she has been involved in various departments of galleries, museums, and festivals, participating in numerous domestic and international exhibitions. Ozkan’s curatorial and academic writings combine philosophy with post-digital terminology and the effects of post-human concepts in interdisciplinary arts. Her unique approach explores the boundaries between physical and virtual worlds, pushing traditional art forms. Her writings offer insightful insights into the intersection of philosophy, technology, and art, making her a leading figure in the field of immersive and emerging technology art. As a curator, she continues to push boundaries and explore new possibilities for showcasing digital art in innovative and immersive ways.
Esra Ozkan was the curator and director of the 2017-2019 bangprix program—Turkey’s leading platform where art, design, technology and science come together—which supported young artists under the age of 35 in data art, new media, bio art, and kinetic arts. Esra curated the bangprix London exhibition in 2019, and presented the Design Thinking Project Insight Report: Global Mobility of Artist at Digital Art Field at Touch Designer Montreal.
Additionally, since 2019 Esra has been a curator at Contemporary Istanbul (CI) which is an international art fair in Istanbul. Esra led large-scale installation projects as a co-curator at Istanbul The Lights Festival, and is also co-coordinator of the V’R’ Storytellers workshop and hackathon at the Amber Network Festival. Since 2020, she is the artistic director of the Istanbul Digital Art Festival.
Additional Past Projects:
2022-2023 Samsung dART Platform Curator & Advisory Member
2022-2023 Curator of X Media Art Museum (Turkey’s First Digital Art Museum)
2019-2023 Artistic Director & co-curator of Istanbul Digital Art Festival
2019-2021 Contemporary Istanbul Fair, Plugin (Plugin a section of Contemporary Istanbul)
