May 15, 2021

Istanbul-based architect, designer and thinker Aslihan Demirtas joins us for this episode of Cultivar. Demirtas discusses her use of soil as an artistic medium. Through her practice of “earthing,” Demirtas removes dirt from urban abstraction in the megacity of Istanbul and reframes it as history—histories of bacteria, microorganisms, fungi, spent plant life, moisture, texture, and color. Demirtas discusses denizen caretakers of soil and how human intervention in the land has a unique history in Istanbul.

Aslihan Demirtas is architect and principal of the interdisciplinary studio Aslihan Demirtas Design & Research Office, based in New York and Istanbul. Her practice crosses disciplines in the forms of building, research exhibitions, and art projects. Often landscape becomes installations in her work.

Follow Demirtas: IG @aslihan_d / TW @uskumru / https://aslihan-demirtas.com/