Biografia
Mehmet Dere was born in 1979 in İzmir. He graduated from Dokuz Eylül University Faculty of Fine Arts, Department of Painting. Mehmet Dere’s studio, located in İzmir – Gürçe#1;me, also hosts the contemporary art initiative 49A, of which he is the founder. This studio has been founded with the pursuit to create a space where contemporary art can exist in the rhythm of everyday life, open itself up to the world, and interact with its environment. 49A, which is the construct of a visible and sustainable tangible space, thus aims to ensure the accessibility and possibilities of production and host other people’s projects in a playfield. The artist, who has opened his first solo exhibitions in this space, is also a longtime member of the K2 Contemporary Art Center in İzmir and has participated in numerous group exhibitions at the center. Additionally Dere has participated in “When Ideas Become Crime” curated by Halil Altındere at the Tütün Deposu in 2010; “Port İzmir 2, Silence_Storm, International Contemporary Art Triennial”; and the “I am Here, The Time is Now” exhibition at Rotterdam curated by Ong Keng Sen and sponsored by the European Culture Fund in 2008. He was awarded the special prize at the “27th Contemporary Artists Exhibition” at Akbank Art Beyoğlu. In 2007, he participated in the special project realized at Santral İstanbul in the scope of the 10th İstanbul Biennial. The artist’s first comprehensive solo exhibition titled “Quid rides? De te fabula narratur.” organized at Rampa consists of a series of ironic and upfront constructs focusing on local and social memory research deriving from Turkey’s cultural history.
