StudioMAHAL AiR Launched with Korhan Başaran

“StudioMAHAL AiR” Launched with Broke’n on May 31!

The first guest of StudioMAHAL AiR is Korhan Başaran, founder of Company RAu, dancer, performance artist, and choreographer. Within the framework of the Broke’n project, accompanied by Ataman Girişken, Eren Uysal, and Nico Dorigatti (Austria), the artist advanced the creation process of a “living monument” and shared the current stage of the project with the audience during the opening event of StudioMAHAL AiR on May 31. This opening event was realized with the infrastructural support of Bor Sanat.

Designed to function both as a living space and a production venue for artists and cultural practitioners, StudioMAHAL AiR will host experienced participants from various artistic disciplines and unique fields of the cultural industry, who bring professional expertise, pedagogical experience, and theoretical knowledge. The program will provide conditions for artists residing in Çanakkale for a certain period to both share their knowledge, experience, and expertise with local young artists and cultural professionals and focus on their own research or production.

StudioMAHAL AiR Began with Broke’n

Defined by Korhan Başaran as a state of being, Broke’n is conceived to reflect the grief and destruction caused by violence in the world, placing at its core the silent scream rising from the essence of humanity and its message to people today. This multi-layered project has met audiences in different geographies and cities since 2009—manifesting in various forms, from pop-up existences in public space to dance films and stage performances. As Başaran describes, “Broke’n is, at its heart, an invitation: to witness grief, to feel the presence of absence, and to step into a space where transformation is possible. With its collaborative structure, the project weaves together movement, mythology, memory, and ecology to offer a poetic confrontation with our fractured world.”

During the March–May period, within the production process hosted by StudioMAHAL AiR, Korhan Başaran (Company RAu), together with Ataman Girişken, Eren Uysal, and Nico Dorigatti (participating with the support of ACF-Istanbul), further developed Broke’n as both a performative piece and an immersive audio-visual experience. On May 31, at the opening of the StudioMAHAL Artist-in-Residence Program, they presented a “work in progress” performance, sharing this multidisciplinary artistic production process with the audience.

StudioMAHAL AiR will continue to host artists and experts from diverse artistic disciplines through new partnerships and projects. The program extends its gratitude to all its local, national, and international partners for their support and contributions, and to CultureCIVIC (2022) and Bor Sanat for their infrastructural support.