On a mild summer evening, a gentle breeze drifts by as familiar faces gather around a long table illuminated by the moonlight. Time flows endlessly, as joy, tranquility, sorrow, and longing are shared in the spirit of sincerity. Freed from the burdens of daily life and assumed identities, there is a peaceful surrender to the infinite embrace of the night sky.

The table is not merely a place to dine; it is a stage that witnesses every moment and feeling—a space for sharing. It lies at the core of gatherings, conversations, decision-making, mourning, and celebration. Bars, taverns, cafés, parlors, and living rooms—all carry echoes of the crowds that reflect various aspects of life and being.

Wide Expanse unfolds around the notion of the table—as a gathering place that brings people together, nourishes memories, and strengthens cultural bonds. Each artwork in the exhibition expresses a universal zest for life through a visual language, weaving traces of the past with hopes for the present. The term “Wide Expanse”, which evokes feelings of spaciousness and spiritual ease, transcends its literal meaning in this exhibition. It invites us into a journey exploring the shared, often unstated emotions that surface when people gather at a table: joy, celebration, mutual happiness and sorrow, mourning, flirting, companionship, neighborliness and heartfelt conversation.

Culinary culture and its surrounding rituals form a quiet symbolic language that conveys the climate, geography, beliefs, collective memory, and cultural codes of societies across generations. In Ancient Greece, “symposia”—gatherings meant for drinking together—were occasions for discussing philosophy and reciting poems about love, desire, and human affection. These gatherings evolved into the “convivium” in Rome, which means living together, emphasizing friends sharing life by dining together. In Wide Expanse, the ancient images of the table and celebration become a narrative that connects the individual with the communal, the everyday with the sacred, and the fleeting with the eternal.

At the heart of the exhibition is a selection of works that represent a joyful rebellion against the passage of time and the burdens of existence. Set in luminous landscapes full of loving people, light, and music, these works invoke feasts that seem to overflow, reminiscent of Amaltheia’s horn of plenty—“the cornucopia”. The essence of Anatolia’s traditional “çilingir sofrası” (literally, locksmith’s table) is also present here. Legend has it that the term “çilingir” refers to a key that unlocks the heart, though in reality, its roots trace back to the Ottoman palace’s “çeşnigirs”— tasters who evaluated and approved each dish. In the early years of the Republic, taverns became gathering spots where poets, writers, journalists, actors, and painters came together to discuss literature and politics, listen to music, and share life. The multicultural fabric of Istanbul found new expressions in these taverns, where tambour and oud melodies filled the air, infusing these spaces with a renewed sense of community and celebration. During this time, European-imported entertainment venues also made their appearance—ballrooms where men and women danced together, cabarets, and “café-chantants”, commonly referred to as “baloz”. Behind the music and dining culture of this era lies a rich, multicultural heritage shaped by the migrations from various corners of the former empire. From that time, many endearing everyday traditions have remained with us: neighborly welcome visits, conversations at the doorstep, innocent flirtations, a sense of familiarity where everyone knows each other, and the safety of children playing in the streets. These customs fostered a simple way of life, allowing space for the distinctive echoes of the neighborhood.

The culture of “sayfiye”—the summer retreat— is both an essential part of this memory and perhaps its most enduring expression. “Sayfiye” represents one of the oldest desires to escape the burdens of urban life. The genuine warmth, love, conversation, and familial intimacy once experienced in city neighborhoods found a new home in these coastal towns. The islands near Istanbul, the shores of the Bosphorus, and seaside villages became havens of peace—places where people could reconnect with nature, the sea, and the sky; where long dining tables were set; and families could spend meaningful time together. “Sayfiye” embodies the quiet joy of watching a serene landscape, the warmth of gathering around a summer table with friends, and the chance to reconnect—with nature, the sky, and one another—through lively, heartfelt conversation.

The most powerful aspect of the table in collective memory lies in its bond with the family—especially the figure of the mother. Much like one’s native language, a mother’s cooking forms one of the deepest layers of belonging and core memory. Those who migrate often carry their culinary traditions with them, rebuilding a sense of hearth and home wherever they settle. In contrast, the Latin root “mensa,” meaning both the act of eating together and the arrangement of seats, gives rise to the notion of the table as a site where hierarchy is reconstructed. Unlike the intimate, familial warmth of the “sofra”, the table becomes a public stage marked by invitation, service, and social distinction. Who sits next to whom, and who holds authority, turns it into a masculine space of negotiation and control. This reality of the table opens a threshold—like the “vanitas” paintings of the past—where the abundance, joy, and serenity symbolized by the sofra give way to a quiet interrogation of the ambiance that follows in the wake of plenitude.

As Sherry Turkle notes in her concept of Alone Together, the rise of digital culture has gradually eroded the rituals of being together, sharing moments, and celebrating. The isolating structure of urban life, combined with the pervasive presence of social media, suspends our experiences somewhere between living and observing them. While our longing for togetherness takes on new forms, the rituals of celebration are transformed. Yet digitalization also allows people across distant geographies to connect simultaneously around shared experiences. Distances, time zones, and borders fade; it becomes possible to laugh as if gathered around the same table, or to feel sorrow for the same stories. This reminds us that while the forms of togetherness evolve, the human need for it remains unchanged.

They set the tables inside the tent, with golden goblets.
A herald was sent to the city, running joyfully, calling all to the feast.
Soon the square filled: garlands, laughter, plentiful food, jars brimming with wine, abundance enough for all.
— Euripides, Ion, 5th century BCE

Perhaps the distance between this ancient scene and our present moment is not as great as it seems. Throughout history, the table has been a ground for gathering—a place defined less by what is served than by who shares it. Beyond the flow of time, beyond social definitions and divisions, what endures from every shared meal is the quiet, human sense of togetherness—woven delicately through the spirit of the Wide Expanse exhibition.

Translation: Matt Hanson