Yelta Köm is an artist who integrates architectural, artistic, and spatial practices to explore social and political issues. Collaboration is essential to his work, which employs diverse methodologies and materials. His projects focus on spatial interventions, resistance movements, technology, and critical perspectives on architectural technologies and representation techniques.
His recent work includes "Nightlife as a Resistance" at Tarabya Kultur Akademie with Ulya Soley, participation in the "Timeless Curiosities" exhibition at Istanbul Modern Museum, and the ongoing "Lines of Displacement" project with Arazi Collective, comissioned by Against Catastrophe.
Köm received his undergraduate degree from the Department of Architecture at Yıldız Technical University and completed his master's degree at the Städelschule Academy of Fine Arts. He participated in Micro Residency (Athens) in 2018 and in SAHA Studio (as part of the Silent University Orientation Program) in 2022. Köm's personal and collective works have been exhibited in several biennials, museums, galleries and art institutions such as Istanbul Biennial, Istanbul Design Biennial, Venice Architecture Biennale, Maxxi Museum (Rome), Goethe-Institut (Athens, Ankara), SALT (Istanbul), V&A Museum (London), nGbK (Berlin), The Art Institute of Chicago, Gallery UM (Prague), transmediale vorspiel Silent Green (Berlin), Chicago Architecture Biennial, TOP e.V (Berlin), and Versus Art Project (Istanbul).
Yelta Köm is currently working as a researcher on the Topological Atlas project hosted by TU Delft and is teaching at Practices and Politics of Representation at the department of Bauhaus Universität Weimar Faculty of Architecture. Co-founder Architecture for All and the artists lives and work in Berlin. He is represented by Versus Art Project; Istanbul.
SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2023
all familiar, all foreign
Curated by Ulya Soley
Versus Art Project, Istanbul, Turkey
2022
Urban Surveillance Bureau: A Sequence of Work in Process
Vorspiel transmediale
TOP e.V, Berlin, Germany
SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2025
Open Studios Tempelhof
TOP Project Space / Zebrahaus, Berlin, Germany
2025
Planetary Peasants
Kunsthalle Moritzburg, Halle, Germany
2024
Ecologies of Making Worlds
University of Applied Arts Vienna, Vienna, Austria
with Arazi Assembly
2024
Sound Kitchen – Nightlife as Sustained Resistance
Summer Festival, Kulturakademie Tarabya, Istanbul, Turkey
(with Ulya Soley & Queerwaves Collective)
2024
PƎRⱯ Reverse: Exercises in Spaces and Texts
Pera Museum, Istanbul, Turkey
(in collaboration with Bauhaus-Universität Weimar and Hochschule für Künste Bremen)
2024
Timeless Curiosities
Istanbul Modern Museum, Istanbul, Turkey
2023
vorspiel transmediale
Silent Green, Berlin, Germany
2022
17th Istanbul Biennial
State of Displacement: Entangled Topographies
with Arazi Assembly & Topological Atlas
Gazhane Museum, Istanbul, Turkey
2022
Coexist, Coact, Collaborate
Curated by Imrich Vaško
Galerie UM, UMPRUM, Prague, Czech Republic
2021
Listening to Listening
Curated by Tuğçe Erel
TOP e.V, Berlin, Germany
2020
Scale
Curated by Ezgi Bakçay
Versus Art Project, Istanbul, Turkey
2019
Chicago Architecture Biennial
with Architecture For All
Washington St., Chicago, USA
2019
I-DEA, Archive of Archives: A Voyage Through the Collections of Basilicata
Matera, Italy
2018
16th International Architecture Exhibition – The Shift
La Biennale di Venezia, Pavilion of Turkey
Venice, Italy
2017
ACTOPOLIS: The Art of Action
Goethe-Institut, Athens, Greece
2016
We Won’t Leave
Goethe-Institut, Ankara, Turkey
2015
Istanbul. Passion, Joy, Fury
with Architecture For All
MAXXI Museum, Rome, Italy
2015
77-13 Political Art and Resistance in Turkey
with Architecture For All
nGbK, Berlin, Germany
2015
Adhocracy [Athens]
with Architecture For All
Onassis Cultural Centre, Athens, Greece
2015
Disobedient Object
with #occupygezi architecture & Architecture For All
Victoria & Albert Museum, London, UK
2014
2nd Istanbul Design Biennial – The Future Is Now What Is Used To Be
with KONTRAAKT, #occupygezi architecture, TwtRate
Istanbul, Turkey
2012
1st Istanbul Design Biennial – Adhocracy
with Ad-Hoc Library, Pelin Tan, Ethel Baraona Pohl
Galata Greek Primary School, Istanbul, Turkey
ARTIST RESIDENCIES
2024
Tarabya Kulturakademie
Istanbul, Turkey
2018
SAHA Studio (Silent University Orientation Program)
Istanbul, Turkey
CURATORIAL PROJECTS
2018
16th International Architecture Exhibition
Associate Curator
La Biennale di Venezia, Pavilion of Turkey, Venice, Italy
2015
VitrA Contemporary Architecture Series “Caution! Slippery Ground”
Curator
Istanbul Modern Museum, Istanbul, Turkey
SELECTED TALKS & SEMINARS
2024
Resisting Against Ecocide: Remapping Hasankeyf and Tigris
Ecologies of Making Worlds Conference
Akademie der bildenden Künste Wien, Vienna, Austria
2024
Spatial Investigations on Blurred Boundaries
Marmara University, Faculty of Fine Arts, Painting Department, Istanbul, Turkey
2024
PROTESTCAMPS DOKUMENTIEREN: GEZI-PARK \ LÜTZERATH
Deutsches Architektur Museum, Frankfurt, Germany
2024
Künstlergespräch mit Yelta Köm
Organised by Public Art and New Artistic Strategies
Bauhaus-Universität Weimar
2023
Urgent Pedagogies: Methodologies
Panel Presentation
Studio Giardini, Venice Architecture Biennale, Venice, Italy
2023
Silent University Meeting – Cultures d'avenir
with Ahmet Öğüt, Yelta Köm
HKW, Berlin, Germany
2022
Discrepancies from Conflicting Pasts and Anti-Colonial Futures
Conversation with Ezgi Kılınçaslan, Yelta Köm (Moderator: Öndercan Muti)
AKEBİ, Berlin, Germany
2021
Experiences, Challenges, Hopes
Panel Discussion with Asli Duru, Banu Çiçek Tülü, Yaşar Adnan Adanalı (Moderator: Yelta Köm)
The Path, Oyoun, Berlin, Germany
2021
A Decentralised Methodology: Architecture for All
Online Lecture
Kadir Has University, Istanbul, Turkey
2020
Hide & Seek | Urban Surveillance Bureau
Project Presentation and Q&A
Forecast Forum, Berlin, Germany
2019
NLB Talks: A Decentralised Methodology – Architecture for All
Lecture
Natural Building Lab, TU Berlin, Germany
2015
14th Istanbul Biennial – Autonomous Archiving: bak.ma meets pad.ma
Conversation
Istanbul, Turkey
2014
2nd Istanbul Design Biennial – Designers in Dialogue: The Future...?
Conversation
Istanbul, Turkey
2014
Gezi Movement and Resistance Architecture
Presentation and Conversation
with #occupygezi architecture & Architecture For All
Bi’bak Exchange, Berlin, Germany
2013
Istanbul and Beirut
Portfolio and Workshop Presentation
AA Mittelmeerland Alexandria Symposium, Egypt
AWARDS, HONOURS, AND NOMINATIONS
2021
GEMSS'21: Emerging Architects Selection and Exhibition
The Circle, Istanbul, Turkey
2020
Forecast Platform Berlin: Hide & Seek
Selected Nominee – Dissecting Technocapitalism moderated by Evgeny Morozov
2017
Design Trust Hong Kong – Design Trust Seed Grant
Commoning Practices Research Grant, Hong Kong
2015
Young Architect Encouragement Award
Arkitera Architecture Centre
2014
Scholarship for Artists and Architects
DAAD – German Academic Exchange Service
2012
Travel Grant
Open Society Foundation
2012
AA Mittelmeerland Beirut
Zeit Foundation, Germany
2011
Arkitera Travel Grant
Arkitera Architecture Centre