Boran is a video work originally created for actor and director Nadir Sönmez’s lecture performance titled Diyarbakır.Tourism.Romanticism.Activism. Nadir Sönmez, an Istanbul-born and based artist, theater director, and actor, embarked on a journey to Diyarbakır with a European grant to delve into the recent local histories of the LGBTI+ struggle. During his exploration, he discovered Kurdish literature, engaging in conversations, romantic escapades, and extensive readings that inspired him to write essays and stories.
In his lecture performance, Sönmez employs autobiographical narratives and video works to immerse the audience in his self-reflective odyssey to Turkey’s “east,” or Kurdistan. This journey explores themes of desire, identity, and the dynamics between oppressor and oppressed cultures. The performance, along with the specific video work, Boran, lays bare how dichotomies such as self/other and occident/orient persist even in geographies that may not be strictly categorized as Western or non-Western.
