Burçak Bingöl, ‘Unit Terrenum Rosa’, 2025
Presented by Galeri Nev İstanbul
Presented by Galeri Nev İstanbul
Burçak Bingöl, Unit Terrenum Rosa, 2025
Presented by Galeri Nev İstanbul
Unit Terrenum Rosa is a materially rich, site-specific sculpture by Burçak Bingöl, shaped as a one-cubic-metre block of rammed earth, embedded with ceramics. The work is formed from Cappadocia soil from Türkiye and soil collected from the Regent’s Park, which was found to contain clay. The resulting ceramic elements incorporate the images of real roses collected by the artist from her neighbourhood Beyoğlu (Istanbul) – including the Garden of the British Consulate (Pera House) and the Galata Mevlevi House – and roses from Queen Mary’s Rose Garden in the Regent’s Park. In this way, the rose, an important motif in Turkish decorative arts, transforms into a cross-cultural connection. The work rethinks culture and nature through the material of ceramics, its decorative elements, and its connection to earth.
The sculpture’s geometric form – a perfect cube – offers a striking contrast to the organic irregularity of the surrounding landscape. It disrupts the natural terrain, acting both as a monument to place and a kind of cross-section through the earth. By remaking the park’s flora from a blend of various soils, Unit Terrenum Rosa speaks to ideas of origin, displacement and layered histories, inviting us to reflect on how borders and environments are reassembled, reimagined and transformed—highlighting the artistic and material links across geographies.
Bingöl’s practice reflects a deep engagement with the relationship between ceramics and the environment. In earlier works, she has used Cornish and China clays collected from landscapes across the UK. In this work, she continues that inquiry into place, material and transformation.
About Burçak Bingöl
Burçak Bingöl (b. 1976, Görele; lives and works in Istanbul) was raised in Ankara and she earned a PhD in Fine Arts from Hacettepe University and studied music at Ankara State Conservatory (1985–91) and photography at The New School, New York (2009). She has held solo exhibitions in New York, Ankara, Istanbul, Berlin, and Tate St Ives, and participated in group shows including Dialogues: Modern Artists and the Ottoman Past at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, and the 15th Istanbul Biennial, a good neighbour.
Her residencies include Porthmeor Studios (Cornwall), IASPIS (Stockholm), Cité des Arts (Paris), Hunter College (New York) and Gate 27 (Ayvalık). Bingöl’s work is held in public and private collections across the US, Europe and the Middle and Far East, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York), 21C Museum (Kentucky), Salsali Private Museum (Dubai), MOCAK (Krakow), Istanbul Modern (Istanbul) and OMM (Eskişehir).
Frieze Sculpture is in The Regent’s Park, 17 September – 2 November 2025. No booking required, free to all.
Further Information
Frieze Sculpture runs alongside Frieze London and Frieze Masters, 15 – 19 October.
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Main Image: Burçak Bingöl, Unit Terrenum Rosa, 2025. Courtesy: Frieze. Photo: Linda Nylind
