232¼ (h) x 59 x 94½ in
Oya–Bülent Eczacıbsi Donation
photo: Baris Aras and Elif Çakirlar.
Bettina Pousttchi at the Istanbul Modern
Bettina Pousttchi’s sculpture Vertical Highways V02 has taken its place in front of Istanbul Modern. Using overlooked elements of urban furniture such as highway guardrails, barricades, street poles, and bollards in her practice, the artist presents a 5,9-meter-tall sculpture whose dynamic forms evoke the energy of Istanbul.
The work takes its title from a series initiated with Pousttchi’s 2019 exhibition at the Berlinische Galerie. It was later produced specifically for the "Unlimited" platform at Art Basel in 2024, curated by Giovanni Carmine, which brought together monumental installations, large-scale sculptures, and expansive video-photography works. A similar sculpture of the identical color and scale has been on view since 2023 in the square in front of Berlin Central Station (Hauptbahnhof), for which it was specially commissioned.
In Vertical Highways V02, Pousttchi bends and reshapes highway guardrails, transforming them into a vivid red, fluid form. Through techniques such as bending and pressing, she detaches everyday objects from their utilitarian functions, loading them with new meanings while dissolving boundaries between speed and stillness, movement and space, the public and the private.
Istanbul as a historical center of cultural dialogue.
Expressing her excitement about having Vertical Highways V02 included in the Istanbul Museum of Modern Art Collection and displayed on the museum’s façade, Pousttchi stated: “The new building of Istanbul Modern and its location on the Bosphorus offer a striking context that amplifies the fluid form of my sculpture. Istanbul is a historical center of cultural dialogue and at the same time an extremely dynamic city. This is also a theme at the core of my artistic approach.”
Art in public space means forging new connections with the city.
Çelenk Bafra, Artistic Director of Istanbul Modern, emphasized that exhibiting art in public space means forging new connections with the city and its surroundings: “For a woman artist from countries such as Iran and Germany—both of which share cultural ties with Türkiye—to present a sculpture in Istanbul that directly engages with the concept of the metropolis reinforces the museum’s relationship with the city. While creating a visual and conceptual dialogue with Istanbul Modern’s new building, the work also reflects the city’s complex, fluid, and dynamic structure through intertwined vertical spirals.”