Walking & Talking with Alia Swastika
Bige Örer, Alia Swastika • 2/1/25
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Walking & Talking, hosted by Istanbul- and London-based curator and organizer Bige Örer, is a series of video-recorded conversational experiences based on walking with each guest curator in the same location or in two different places in the world. Some of these conversations address broad societal, cultural, or philosophical questions, while others may unfold more intimate concerns and flow with inner journeys. The walks are imagined as poems shared between the participants on their shared paths.
We begin with a conversation recorded last June (new conversations will launch soon). In this insightful conversation with Alia Swastika—a curator, writer, and researcher based in Yogyakarta, Indonesia—she shares her curatorial journey, emphasizing her focus on decoloniality and feminism. As she strolls through the streets of Yogyakarta, while Örer does the same in London, Swastika reflects on how the political upheaval during the fall of Suharto's regime in 1998 shaped her perspectives on art and politics. She discusses feeling isolated in high school due to her peers' lack of political interest, leading her to spend time in libraries and art galleries where she engaged deeply with political movements and artistic expression. She then delves into her work with the Jogja Biennial and the Equator Biennial, highlighting efforts to reconnect with the Global South and foster collaborations among artists from regions with shared colonial histories. Swastika speaks about her methodologies and challenges as a co-curator for the upcoming Sharjah Biennial, aiming to create meaningful, interconnected projects that explore themes of collectivism, individuality, and transnational feminist connections. Throughout the conversation, the dialogue emphasizes the importance of creating spaces for critical perspectives, multiplying narratives, and supporting marginalized voices in the art world.
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Alia Swastika is a curator, researcher, and writer whose practice over the last ten years has expanded on issues and perspectives of decoloniality and feminism. Her different projects involve decentralizing art, rewriting art history, and encouraging local activism. She works as the Director of the Biennale Jogja Foundation, Yogyakarta, and has focused her research on Indonesian female artists during Indonesia’s New Order. Some of this research was published in 2019. Swastika established and was the program director for Ark Galerie, Yogyakarta (2007–2017). She was co-curator for the Biennale Jogja XI Equator #1 (2011); co-artistic director of the 9th Gwangju Biennale (2012); and roundtable curator for contemporary art exhibitions for the Europalia Arts Festival (2017), including presentations at Oude Kerk, Amsterdam; M HKA, Antwerp; and SMAK Ghent, Belgium.
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Bige Örer is an Istanbul- and London-based independent curator and writer dedicated to amplifying the voices and visions of artists. Her curatorial practice is rooted in centering creativity and artistic perspectives, ensuring that artists remain at the heart of every exhibition and project she oversees. From 2008 to 2024, Örer served as the director of the Istanbul Biennial, where she transformed the biennial into a dynamic platform for artistic collaboration and intellectual exchange. She was instrumental in developing programs that broadened the biennial’s reach, particularly focusing on children and youth, while fostering artistic engagement throughout Turkey and internationally. In 2022, Örer curated Once upon a time…, the Füsun Onur exhibition at the Pavilion of Turkey for the 59th Venice Biennale. Her curatorial projects also include Flâneuses (Institut français Istanbul, 2017), an ongoing series involving walks with artists. Örer played a key role in establishing the Istanbul Biennial Production and Research Program, the SaDe Artist Support Fund, and coordinated initiatives such as the Cité des Arts Turkey Workshop Artist Residency Program and the Turkish Pavilion at the International Art and Architecture Exhibitions of the Venice Biennale. Örer has contributed articles to numerous publications and taught at Istanbul Bilgi University. She has also served as a consultant and jury member for various international art institutions, and from 2013 to 2024, she was the vice president of the International Biennial Association. During this time, she also contributed to the editorial and programming board of the association’s journal, PASS. She is a member of the Curatorial Studies Workshop, part of the Expanded Artistic Research Network (EARN).
