In Haste / Motus

A Sub-Series of Motus

Exhibitions: Pinalo Galeri, Istanbul (2014) · Abraham-Gumbel-Saal, Heilbronn (2019)

Ayaküstü (In Haste) is a four-year project by Burak Bulut Yıldırım that follows unexpected encounters in the everyday life of Istanbul. Ballerinas appear without announcement in the city's metro, on its ferries, in the streets of Galata, and along İstiklal Avenue in Taksim. Ballet, a Western performing art usually confined to indoor stages, meets the raw, living texture of Istanbul's streets. City and stage, passerby and spectator begin to overlap, and the familiar sense of place and time in the city shifts.

The project's focus lies less on the ballerinas than on the people of Istanbul who witness them. Astonishment, curiosity, and nonchalance cross the faces of passersby, and the photographs hold all three. Set against the historic places of a constantly changing metropolis, the dancers' composure creates an intentional distance between the performance and the street. That distance registers a sense of alienation, while the crowd around them carries the rhythm, gestures, and sounds of the city.

As the dancers leave the stage for the metro, ferries, stations, shops, and alleys, they slip into the ordinary. What usually dissolves into the city's relentless flow becomes visible, if only for a moment.

The project was featured in the Turkish daily Radikal under the headline "Kentte bale zarafeti" ("Ballet's grace in the city").

80 × 120 cm · Edition of 5 + 1 AP · Archival pigment print (giclée) In Haste, Heilbronn, 2019Radikal newspaper feature 'Kentte bale zarafeti' on In Haste
A ballet dancer in a grey coat and pointe shoes stands still amidst a bustling urban street scene in black and white.
A dancer in a patterned dress performs a pose in front of an ornate stone wall, while two seated figures watch in a black-and-white scene.
Crowds gather on stone steps outside a mosque, featuring a woman juggling in motion, set against a black-and-white backdrop.
A dancer strikes a pose in a historic corridor, surrounded by onlookers. The scene is captured in striking black and white tones.
A monochrome scene in an archway captures a poised woman in a sleek black dress and ballet shoes, surrounded by casually dressed men.
A dancer in a flowing dress poses gracefully in a bustling market, surrounded by people and street vendors, captured in black and white.
A bustling street scene in black and white, featuring a mix of people including a standing woman in heels, diverse pedestrians, and graffiti-covered storefronts.
A dancer in a flowing top performs a high kick down a narrow alley, surrounded by seated patrons and twinkling lights, in black and white.
A dancer in a floral dress poses gracefully on one leg under sunlight, while seated people watch in a bustling urban setting.