Ferhat Taylan and Simon Starling | 15.12.2016
Ferhat Taylan is postdoctoral researcher in philosophy at the University of Liège within the context of the Belgian Fonds de la Recherche Scientifique (FNRS). The focus of his research lies on the modern categories of environmental knowledge and their implication in social policies. His PhD thesis explored the French notion of »milieu« as well as its ramifications in social sciences and politics, published 2018 by Editions de la Sorbonne as Mésopolitique. Connaître, théoriser, gouverner les milieux de vie (1750-1900). He is author of an essay on historical epistemology, »Concepts et rationalités. Héritages de l'épistémologie historique de Meyerson à Foucault« (Editions Matériologiques, 2018). Furthermore Taylan has taught philosophy of environment at the Nanterre University and science studies at Sciences Po in Paris.
Simon Starling lives and works in Copenhagen and Berlin. He studied at the Glasgow School of Art and has established himself as one of the leading artists of his generation. In his work in a wide variety of media (film, installation, photography) he explores the histories of art and design, scientific discoveries, and global economic and ecological issues, among other subjects. He represented Scotland at the 50th Biennale di Venezia (2003) and was awarded the 2005 Turner Prize for his work Shedboatshed. Between 2003 and 2013 he taught as Professor of Fine Arts at the Städelschule in Frankfurt am Main. His work was shown in solo shows worldwide, amongst others at Villa Arson in Nice, France, at the Museum of Contemporary Arts in Basel, at Mass MOCA in North Adams, USA; at Tate Britain in London, at the Staatsgallerie in Stuttgart, and at MUMA in Melbourne, and is represented in major international collections, including Astrup Fearnley Collection; Museet for Moderne Kunst, Oslo; Castello di Rivoli, Turin; Gallery of Modern Art, Glasglow; Tate Modern, London; Moderna Museet, Stockholm, and the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York.