Let harmony take me, let unity have me;

I can no longer dwell in shadow existence.

In one of his rubai, Rumi says ‘whatever is visible in the world is a shadow’. Shadow is the evidence of light, and light is the source of life. The universe is illuminated by Allah's grace and mercy. This truth is mentioned in our sublime book, the Holy Qur'an, in Surah Nur: ‘Allah is the light of the heavens and the earth... He is light upon light’. Each of the shadows that appear and disappear in the universe is essentially an indicator pointing to the eternal existence, power and comprehensiveness of the Divine Light and waiting to be understood.

In Islamic civilisation, art is a means for man to make sense of his own existence and to mature his existence, which is only a shadow. The artist must understand not only the body perceived by the senses in the realm of illusions, confined to a relative and limited space, but also the originality, differences and changes in the soul that opens to eternity. An art directed towards light, the source of light, mediates the opening of eyes that do not see and the hearing of ears that do not hear.

In our civilisation, art, with all its dimensions and orientations, is the awakening to the awareness of being the one that thinks, acts, and desires the good with its thoughts and actions. The artist who observes the universe with the eye of wonder will sooner or later discover the harmony and balance within the contrasts. His love for the Absolute Beauty and his journeys with the longing to meet it will carry him to the threshold of rebirth. Here, doors of discovery open one after the other, unseen colours, untasted flavours, and unfelt smells are revealed. The human being who is trained in art becomes an eyewitness of how the Creator matures the ores in the mine of possibility and how predestination and destiny are realised by His judgement.

The Yeditepe Biennial, which we have organised for the third time under the title ‘Where There is Shadow, There Must Be Light’, presents the products of such a maturation adventure with all its vitality and glamour. The biennial, which is now a valuable brand of our city, will host its visitors in the uniquely beautiful places of Fatih, the apple of our civilisation's eye; Yedikule Fortress, Nuruosmaniye Cellar, Sirkeci Train Station, Nusret Çolpan Art Gallery. I would like to thank our artists and curators for honouring our biennial, and I hope that the works exhibited here will provide inner discoveries for people looking for a way out of a world where visuality and impermanence are prominent.

Mehmet Ergün TURAN
Mayor Of Fatih Municipality