5 Person Bufet is an ongoing project by Turkish artist Deniz Gül. First taking the form of a screenplay written by the artist about five characters physically and metaphorically locked inside five enclosed spaces or cabinets, the project evolved into a sculptural installation manifesting the five pieces of furniture, which she presented at ARTER, Istanbul, in 2011. Now, Gül along with five musicians and performers personifying the characters will present a performative sound piece at Hyde Park Art Center.

A 2012 participant in the Jackman Goldwasser Residency, Gül began developing this piece and current phase of her ongoing project in close collaboration with musicians:

Audrey Chen 
Owen Davis 
Carol Genetti
Frank Rosaly
Katherine Young

From March 30 through April 6, the artists will gather in Chicago, rehearse and record the score they have been developing remotely for two years, and this will culminate in the performance on April 6.

Events include:
Saturday, April 4 (2-5 pm): Open Rehearsal / Workshop, Followed by a discussion with the artists
Monday, April 6 (7 pm): Performance

About the Artist:
Deniz Gül was born in 1982 in İzmir, Turkey and is based in Istanbul. Since earning a BA at Sabanci University in Istanbul, her work has been included in exhibitions in institutions, including Salzburger Kunstverein, the Center for Contemporary Art Ujazdowski Castle, Palais des Beaux Arts in Lille, Centre De Cultura Contemporania in Barcelona. In 2011, her first solo exhibition, 5 Person Bufet, was presented at ARTER in Istanbul, and in 2013, she presented B.I.M.A.B.K.R. at Gallery Mana in Istanbul. She has been awarded by CEC ArtsLink (New York) and Saha Project Support Program (Istanbul) to realize 5 Person Bufet as a full-scale performance at Hyde Park Art Center in Chicago. Gül has participated in residencies internationally, including Hyde Park Art Center, Tokyo Wonder Site, KHOJ in Mumbai, India, ORTung in Salzburg, and Platform Garanti in Istanbul.

Gül’s work interrogates the ways in which public and private domains are constructed through various juxtapositions; she seeks to redefine boundaries, infusing spaces and reorienting objects into new patterns of experience. She is interested in the performativity of places and objects. Gül’s work often incorporates multiple phases; she creates texts, followed by objects and installations that convey multiple meanings through their poetic forms. Gül is currently developing an installation for the 14th Istanbul Biennial, curated by Carolyn Christov Bakargiev.

Hyde Park Art Center and the artist wish to acknowledge SAHA Foundation and CEC ArtsLink for their generous support of this project and for the support presented by Mehveş Arıburnu and Madlen Ma. Additional thanks to Füsun Eczacıbaşı, Selda Asal, Koray Öz, Başak Günak, Melih Fereli, Jaki Baruh, Caner Gürsoy, Utku Uğurtaş, Leyla Gediz for their kind support on Kickstarter.

Deniz Gül portrait credit: Korhan Karaoysal
Installation photo credit: Cemal Emden