Gezi park
On May 2013 protests began to occur as a reaction to plans to replace Taksim Gezi Park with a shopping mall and residence. The protests ultimately developed into riots when people began occupying Taksim square and the police tried to suppress the demonstrations. The subjects of the protests have since broadened beyond the development of Taksim Gezi Park, covering issues such as freedom of assembly and expression, as well as more broadly defending the secularism of Turkey.
The project aims to represent the glitch existing between the forced appearance of normality that was precipitately given back to the park after the riots and the few subtle traces left behind by the recent incidents. A dead tree or a broken balustrade, standing next to a brand-new children play-ground, become silent witnesses of an artificial normality, evident scars of a traumatic past.