“Doug Aitken: Naked City” Workshop Program for Adults

Soundscapes Workshop with Nisan Ak

25 May 2025 Sun ○ 13:00 - 14:00

Drawing inspiration from Doug Aitken’s Naked City (2024), this workshop transforms the relationship between sound and urban environments into a sensory experience. Emphasizing the importance of music in Aitken’s artistic practice, the workshop explores the rhythms of the city of Istanbul and the Bosphorus, while also tuning into the tempos of other cities referenced in the exhibition, such as New York and Los Angeles.

Key concepts such as “tempo,” “auditory experience,” “introspective listening,” and “meditative engagement” shape the core of this workshop. Participants will be encouraged to develop an alternative perspective on the exhibition by discovering the rhythm of contemporary metropolises.
Led by Nisan Ak, the workshop invites participants not only to hear the city, but to become part of its soundscape.

Nisan Ak:
Named to Forbes Turkey’s “30 Under 30” list in 2019, Nisan Ak is one of Turkey’s most versatile conductors. She is the music director of the Turkish American Orchestra, which she founded in New York.

Ak has performed in cities such as San Francisco, Miami, Charleston, Bursa, Ankara, Antalya, and Quebec. During the 2023–24 season, she conducted concerts with the Borusan Istanbul Philharmonic and the Antalya State Symphony Orchestra. Her 2021 Carnegie Hall debut marked a significant milestone in her international career. She creates content for platforms like YouTube, TEDx, TRT Müzik, and BorusanSanat TV to bring classical music to wider audiences, and she has collaborated with brands such as Kiehl’s, Doritos, and Mercedes-Benz to highlight women’s leadership and the power of classical music.

Born in Istanbul, Dr. Nisan Ak is a graduate of Bilgi University, City University of New York, and the University of South Carolina. She continues her artistic career with performances in both Türkiye and the United States.

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