COnscription was a multimedia installation inspired by stories from Turkey exploring the call-up to military service for people who don’t ‘fit the mould’
Three strangers meet in a military psychiatric ward. Each man has a story; each has his doubts about the others. All are being watched and judged. As they await their fate, they are called individually to see the doctor whose decision will influence the rest of their lives. The pressure builds, fear rises and secrets are revealed.
Will they be exempted on medical grounds? Will they refuse outright? Or will they be forced to serve?
A military hospital room was reconstructed at the exhibition space, where a four-channel film followed their story, placing the visitor in the position of an unseen protagonist, an intrigued spectator or simply a passer-by. Avoiding a judgemental or prescriptive approach, COnscription prompted the viewer to explore the position of individual within the social system, and what it meant for the two to be at odds.
Read more and share your thoughts on the COnscription blog
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COnscription was funded by the Arts Council of England and produced by filmpro ltd
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Conceived and Directed by Caglar Kimyoncu
Producers: Chas de Swiet and Caglar Kimyoncu
Development Producers: Karen MacDonald and Patrick Campbell
Director of Photography: Markus A. Ljungberg
Sound Recorder and Sound Designer: Andres Silva, La Tina Sonido Creativo SAS
Production Designers/Set Builders: Mamoru Iriguchi, Zekan Cemal
Offline Editor: Zeynep Dağlı
Online Editor: Juan Soto
Production Co-ordinator: Foteini Galanopoulou
Dramaturg: Michael Achtman
Assistant Director: Daniel McGowan
Cast
Gökmen: Haydar Köyel
Yiğit: Hemi Yeroham
Ali: Günalp Koçak
Doctor: Manolis Emmanouel
Camera Assistant: Jan Kostelnik
Gaffer: Tom Nowel
Make Up Artist: Dee Howland and Amy Goodemua
Catering: Theresa Kiyota Rahman de Swiet, Chris Kelham
Runners: Qila Gill, Thomas Giddens
Stills Photographer: Zeynep Dağlı
Making of: Cristina Perezzani
Researcher: Özlem Hangül
Publicity Consultant (Turkey): Esra Aliçavuşoğlu Karaveli
Additional Sound Recording: Serkan Sevilgen
Supported using public funding by Arts Council England
Partner organization: War Resisters International
Advisory Group: Özgür Heval Çınar, Hannah Brock, Patrick Campbell
Exhibition Producer: Karen MacDonald
Graphic Designer: Zeynep Dağlı
Exhibition Catalogue: Michael Achtman/Zeynep Dağlı
Translation (Turkish to English): Sertan Sanderson
Production and Marketing: filmpro ltd.
All the individuals shared their stories, Arcola Theatre, Barış İçin Vicdani Ret Platformu, Savaş Karşıtları, Bülent Küçükaslan (www.engelliler.biz), LAMBDA, KAOS GL.
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‘Conscientious objection is little enough dealt with in mainstream political discourse, let alone as the subject for a gallery installation. So it was encouraging, and probably groundbreaking in a London context, that filmpro made conscientious objection (and, in particular, conscientious objection in Turkey) the subject of a two-week installation at an east London gallery during May, called COnscription.‘
by Albert Beale (Peace Pledge Union), in ‘The Broken Rifle’ by the War Resisters International.
Click here to read the full review
‘You sit on or beside a bed in a cold bare hospital room. There are matching beds projected on the walls on either side of you. Three men in pyjamas speak to and interact with each other from both sides of the room. Behind you each patient is being interrogated by a doctor who appears on the fourth wall.
Caglar Kimyoncu’s COnscription is an immersion into the experience of the psychological testing endured by military conscripts in Turkey‘
by Joe McConnell, on Disability Arts Online
Click here to read the full review
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Exhibited in
Venue: Old Truman Brewery, 4 Wilkes Street, London, E1 6QF. Google Map of 4 Wilkes Street E1 6QF
Dates: Thursday 2nd – Saturday 18th May 2013
Opening times: Tuesday – Sunday, 11am – 6pm / Friday 11am – 8pm
Part of the Whitechapel Gallery’s ‘First Thursdays’: Thursday 2nd May
Access
The venue was wheelchair accessible.
Alternate screenings included audio description, English captions and Turkish subtitles.
An audio description guide for the exhibition was available.
Panel discussions events were British Sign Language interpreted and had speech-to-text provision.
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Explore COnscription:
Audio Introduction to the Exhibition
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COnscription was the first project in ‘Conscientious Objectors‘, a series of collaborative research-based works coming from countries which use conscription and national service.
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