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Art perseveres in Istanbul despite coronavirus

The city’s traditional fall art season is underway as curators take new approaches to exhibit work safely and sustainably during the coronavirus pandemic, despite confusing government restrictions about what would be allowed to go ahead.
People stand on the "Meeting Point", a temporary designed mobile public forum and exhibition center on Febuary 18, 2020 near Gezi Park in Istanbul. (Photo by Yasin AKGUL / AFP) (Photo by YASIN AKGUL/AFP via Getty Images)

Istanbul’s art community has rolled up its sleeves this fall to make sure the shows go on, even as government restrictions to curb the coronavirus outbreak and worries about public health threatened to shelve the traditional art season.

Curators have moved exhibitions outdoors and online, collaborating with institutions across borders and focusing on local artists and audiences, making their exhibitions safer and more sustainable in the process.

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