Değirmen Müzikhol, one of the first LGBTI+ spaces in Turkey which existed in Fatih beginning from the 1990s and closed down in 2008. Değirmen used to be one of the hottest spots in Istanbul during its heyday; it even had foreign visitors. It is rumoured to have played a significant role in organised resistance. Süleyman the Hose, who is also the main instigator of the forced exile from Ülker Street, used to raid the club routinely. I dive into the digital archives of Radikal Newspaper and Kaos GL. It turns out a park memorialising martyrs was built right across the club by the Municipality of Fatih in 2008, instantly rendering Değirmen an unfit backdrop for the park, and closing it down.
I decide to reproduce the signboard of Değirmen Müzikhol. There are a few storefront sign-makers near my house in Tekirdağ. I pay a visit to Atlas Advertising, the first place I spot, with my design for the signboard. Following an excited wait, a signboard emanating maroon lights emerges. I imagine this sign for Değirmen Müzikhol among the visual pandemonium of the Fatih district.*
*Furkan Öztekin, “Opening Boxes/Terminals”, Re: [AAP_2020], Edited by: İz Öztat and Merve Ünsal (İstanbul: Arter Publications, 2021)
Furkan Öztekin, Değirmen Müzikhol, Sign Board, 50 x 70 x 14 cm, 2018
Radikal Newspaper & Kaos GL Archives
Furkan Öztekin 