In Pictures

Gallery|Arts and Culture

Photos: Syrian couple launch Arab cultural centre in Istanbul

YoloArt gives a space for Istanbul’s Arab creatives to train, perform, and meet.

YoloArt Center
The building lies in the Balat neighbourhood of Istanbul's Fatih district, where lively streets are lined with charming cafes filled with locals and tourists. Agha and Bakr renovated what was an abandoned building a year ago [Hosam Salem/Al Jazeera]
By Hosam Salem
Published On 4 Jul 2022

In Istanbul’s strikingly colourful Balat neighbourhood, a young Syrian couple decided to add their own touch – an Arab cultural centre and cafe called YoloArt.

The building, which opened in May, includes a cafe, a performance stage for concerts, a 75-seater theatre, and a training centre for workshops and discussions.

Syrian architect Bayan Agha told Al Jazeera that she, along with her husband, film director Jihad Bakr, hopes to cater to the ever-increasing Arab minority in the Turkish city, who they say lack similar social, artistic and communal spaces.

Millions of Arabs live in Turkey, constituting one of the largest minority groups in the country. The number of Arabs has drastically increased in recent years, particularly due to the influx of Syrian refugees after the 2011 uprising and subsequent war.

Agha and Bakr have lived in Istanbul since 2013.

The couple’s interest in art and previous experience in the field created a desire to have a space designed for creativity, expression and community.

“YoloArt Center provides an integrated environment for people to produce, train and perform for others in a small space that Arabs lack in Istanbul,” said Agha.

“The idea of YoloArt came at a time when Bayan and I were searching for an Arab space to meet others, to talk, to learn, to see theatre. So we decided to create this space to offer these things to the audience,” Bakr told Al Jazeera.

“Some 1,800 people have visited our centre since we opened,” he added.

Bayan- Jihad
'We started with training courses and theatre, then a sociocultural salon, then held artistic concerts,' Agha told Al Jazeera. In essence, she said, they created a 'social-artistic cultural forum'. Agha, who has worked in media and art, said the couple believed there to be a 'shortage in the Arab market for this kind of space'. [Hosam Salem/Al Jazeera]
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WorkShop Area
The couple have hosted workshops, including one recently for children aged eight to 12 for 'creativity and imagination', with activities focused on drawing and inventing stories. [Hosam Salem/Al Jazeera]
jingle bell jam
The centre holds a social event every Thursday, Jingle Bell Jam, where musicians sing and play Arab songs at the cafe. [Hosam Salem/Al Jazeera]
Martin Aqqad
Syrian guitarist Martin Aqqad, right, participates in the Jingle Bell Jam. He told Al Jazeera that when he learned about YoloArt's interest and support for creative young people, he began dedicating every Thursday to playing there. 'We enjoy the lively atmosphere we create, with the participation of the crowd,' said Aqqad. 'A place like this opens up a space for talented people to meet, and in the future with the help of YoloArt it could be a starting point for many talents of ours,' he added. [Hosam Salem/Al Jazeera]
Ziad Alsharief
Ziad al-Sharif, 21, is an Egyptian who has lived in Istanbul for five years. Bayan, who he knew from before, offered him the idea of ​​performing stand-up comedy. 'We now have a theatre here, and we perform comedy on a weekly basis,' he told Al Jazeera. [Hosam Salem/Al Jazeera]
BisherNajjar
Syrian host Bisher Najjar, who has a large social media following, has held several workshops and discussion groups at the centre. [Hosam Salem/Al Jazeera]
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Coffe Shop
The space is designed with colourful interiors and a quaint and lively atmosphere. 'I usually visit the Balat neighbourhood with my wife, until I ended my wanderings in this Arab place here,' one visitor, Ahmed, told Al Jazeera. 'We were happy, and we became permanent visitors to the place.' [Hosam Salem/Al Jazeera]
Nusaiba
Nusseibeh regularly comes to work at the cafe, half an hour's drive from her home in Istanbul. For her, it is a place to meet fellow Arabs, including artists in various fields. [Hosam Salem/Al Jazeera]
Krist _ Seed
Jordanian-Palestinian rapper Krist al-Zo’bi has been visiting Istanbul for years. He met Syrian rapper Sayyed Zain, who resides in Istanbul, at YoloArt. Al-Zo'bi invited his two Palestinian rapper friends, Al Khyya and Ouf, to hold a concert at the centre. [Hosam Salem/Al Jazeera]
Antar
Palestinian rapper Mohammad Antar, who also held a performance, told Al Jazeera: 'YoloArt is a must in a place like Istanbul, because it provides a space for artists to meet.' [Hosam Salem/Al Jazeera]