Journeys With No Return was a project that began in 2006, involving sixteen artists, three curators, and one exhibition organizer based in Istanbul, London, and Berlin. The project centered around a dialogue on contemporary art, reflecting the last 50 years of Turkish migration to Germany and the UK. The idea was conceived after working on a previous exhibition, Strangers with Angelic Faces, curated by Levent Çalıkoğlu and organized by Alice Sharp and Denizhan Ozer, which took place in London and Istanbul in 2005/6.
Journeys With No Return involved collaboration with various partners across the three cities. The four major partners were the Arcola Theatre, A Foundation, Akbank Cultural Centre, and Tiergarten Kunstverein. The project’s outcomes were ongoing, with artist residencies held in Berlin and Istanbul in early 2009, and an exhibition and conference taking place at the Akbank Cultural Centre in Istanbul in September 2009. An exhibition and conference were planned for 2010 at Club Row, A Foundation, Shoreditch, London in February, and at Tiergarten Kunstverein in Berlin in June.
The project was multidisciplinary, incorporating the Arcola Theatre in London, known for its innovative theatre productions. The Arcola had a sister theatre in Istanbul, where youth workshops and further dialogues took place in both Istanbul and London.