BETÜL AKSUb. 1990
Lives and works in Izmir



Artist statement
Betül Aksu’s practice explores how boundaries appear in everyday life, focusing on the role of language within bureaucratic and geopolitical systems. Working across installation, performance, text, video, and print, she examines language as both a mechanism of control and a site of resistance. 

She weaves together personal experience, archival material, and fictional narratives to critically examine the relationship between identity and the structures that govern movement and access. Central to her practice is an inquiry into how bureaucratic systems shape our understanding of freedom, belonging, and personal identity.

Her approach interrogates the function of language within institutional frameworks, revealing how it reinforces barriers to inclusion and mobility. By engaging with immigration policies, official documents, and regulatory language, she exposes and challenges the mechanisms that limit participation, reimagining language as a space for resistance, redefinition, and connection.


Bio
Betül Aksu holds a BA in Linguistics from Hacettepe University, an MSc in Cognitive Science from Trento University, an MSc in Language Science and Technology from Saarland University, and studied for a PhD in Media and Arts Technology at Queen Mary University of London. Her diverse academic background informs her approach, blending theory and practice to critique societal structures.

She has participated in the SAHA Studio residency (2024) in Istanbul, the BAK Fellowship for Situated Practice (2023–2024) at BAK, basis voor actuele kunst, Utrecht, the Istanbul Biennial Production and Research Programme at IKSV (2022), and the School of Commons Research Residency (2021–2022). In 2023, she founded sezon, an independent art space in Izmir dedicated to exploring the politics and poetics of change. Her recent solo exhibitions include Permessus at AVTO, Istanbul (2024) and hold, place, transfer, repeat at Material, Zurich (2024).

She is currently a residency artist at the Irish Museum of Modern Art (IMMA).


Contact
betulaksu[at]protonmail.com
instagram.com/betulaksu


Education
2015-2020   PhD (not completed), Media and Arts Technology, Queen Mary University of London, UK
2014-2015    MSc, Language Science and Technology, Saarland University, Germany
2013-2014    MSc, Cognitive Science, University of Trento, Italy
2009-2013   BA (Hons), English Linguistics, Hacettepe University, Türkiye


Fellowships & Residencies
2025               Dwell Here Residency, Irish Museum of Modern Art (IMMA), Dublin, Ireland
2024               SAHA Studio, Istanbul, Türkiye
2023-2024    BAK Fellowship for Situated Practice, BAK basis voor actuele kunst, Utrecht, Netherlands & Istanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts (IKSV), Istanbul, Türkiye
2022                The Istanbul Biennial Production and Research Programme, Istanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts (IKSV), Istanbul, Türkiye
2021-2022     School of Commons, Zurich University of the Arts, Zurich, Switzerland & online
2017                 AltCity Istanbul Digital Arts Residency, British Council & Zorlu PSM, Istanbul, Türkiye


Solo Exhibitions
2024    Permessus, AVTO, Istanbul, Türkiye
              hold, place, transfer ↵ repeat, Material, Zurich, Switzerland


Selected Group Exhibitions
2025    to carry, Sharjah Biennial 16, Sharjah, UAE
              v,o,w,e,l,h,a,r,m,o,n,y with Memed Erdener, Hayy Open Space, Izmir, Türkiye
2024    New Lands, Arkas Sanat Alaçatı, curated by Necmi Sönmez, Izmir, Türkiye
2023    Sidestep/reproduced//insolently, 5533, curated by Fırat Yusuf Yılmaz, Istanbul, Türkiye
              öncesi, sezon, Izmir, Türkiye
2022    If It Is A Garden That Has Become A Wilderness, School of Commons, Zurich, Switzerland
              Hikayeler yürür, Kasa Gallery, curated by Emre Akaltın, Istanbul, Türkiye
              This is not a chance encounter, Journeys Festival International, Leicester, UK
              Young Fresh Different 11, Zilberman Gallery, Istanbul, Türkiye
              Kronos Orada Değildi, altatölye, curated by İrem Hasçiftçi Kurt, Ankara, Türkiye
              Coulisse, Mixer, curated by Eda Öztürk, Istanbul, Türkiye
2021     Nothing’s gonna change my world?, gr-und, Berlin, Germany
              In Your Hands, Newlyn Art Gallery, Cornwall, UK
              Kula, Ecumene Project, online
2020    Freedom of Movement?, Journeys Festival International, online
              The Garden of Forking Paths, Ars Electronica, online
              Take Dada Seriously? (it’s worth it?), Decorating Dissidence & Guest Projects London, online            
2019     Weave It!, Stour Space, London, UK
              Peripheries, The Glucksman Gallery, Cork, Ireland     
2018     Error: The Art of Imperfection, Ars Electronica, Linz, Austria
2016     Intersections, Mile End Art Pavilion, London, UK
2015     Dorkbot London #90, Limehouse Town Hall, London, UK
        

Selected Performances
2024    Global Talent, BAK, basis voor actuele kunst, Utrecht, Netherlands
              Still in my quotidian, de Appel, Amsterdam, Netherlands            
2022    Bureau of Commons: London entry, Victoria Park, London, UK
              Bureau of Commons: Venice entry, Venice, Arsenale & Giardini, Italy
              officialese: from Taksim Gezi Park to Tünel and back, Istanbul, Türkiye
2021     Bureau of Commons: Zürich entry, Zurich, Switzerland


Curatorial
2024-2025    Vranofça Archive, sezon, Izmir, Türkiye
2023               before, sezon, Izmir, Türkiye
2022               This is not a chance encounter, Journeys Festival International, Leicester, UK


Teaching
2023             Guest Lecturer Film Interiors, Department of Interior Design, Bilgi University, Istanbul, Türkiye         
2020             Guest Lecturer Research Methods and Responsible Innovation, EECS, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK       
2016-2021    TA Professional & Research Practice, EECS, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK
2017-2018    TA Graphical User Interfaces, EECS, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK
2016-2018    TA Interaction Design, EECS, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK


Selected Publications
2025    book Day to Day, YAZ Publication Series 
2024    essay Emir kipinden süzülerek, katlar arası, Unlimited Publications
2022    book This is not a chance encounter, lemma_space
              essay Adım Adım Büyücü ve Bahçe, manifold
              essay We scan your documents on your behalf, School of Commons Issues
2021     essay Merits of Eligibility: rethinking criteria in art open calls, School of Commons Issues
              book Researching the Researcher, School of Commons              


Press
2025    review Still in My Quotidian: Yani, how to break a broken language, Esra Oskay, m-est.org (TR)
              review Dünyalı Olmak ya da Olmamak, Ozan Özkan, Sanat Dünyamız, 204, sf. 142-147 (TR)
              review “Ses Uyumu”na deri-ben üzerinden bir yaklaşım, Ezgi Ceren Kayırıcı, Argonotlar (TR)
              interview s,e,s,u,y,u,m,u, Merve Akar Akgün, ArtUnlimited (TR)
              video Betül Aksu ve Memed Erdener - s,e,s,u,y,u,m,u - Hayy Open Space, İzmirArt (TR)
2024    video Betül Aksu | SAHA Studio 8. Dönem | SAHA Studio 8th Term, SAHA Studio (TR)
              interview Yaratıcı Sürecin Değişkenleri: SAHA Studio’da Sanatçılarla Ara Dönem Buluşması, Serra Oruç, Artful Living (TR)
              review The Imagined Reality of Betül Aksu’s “Permessus”, Alfonse Chiu, ArtAsiaPacific (HK)
              review Free Verse // Closed Circuit: The Words and Works of Betül Aksu, Amy Gowen, The Contrapuntal (NL)
              interview Sınır müzakereleri: Betül Aksu ile Permessus’un tahayyülü üzerine, Fırat Yusuf Yılmaz, Argonotlar (TR)
              review Dilin yol boyu sezgiyle ifadesi, Burçak Fakıoğlu Yakıcı, Unlimited Publications (TR)
              podcast Ve Diğer İşler podcast
2023    podcast Yaratıcı Eylem ve Sanatsal Üretim - Ezgi Bakçay & Betül Aksu, Part 1, Part 2, yermekân