Rey Akdogan: Carousels

Rey Akdogan focuses on the standardization of materials and perception processes that shape our visual present.

– Rey Akdogan, Single slide from Carousel #9, 2016

In her exhibition at Haus am Waldsee, Rey Akdogan explores the mechanisms that guide our gaze in everyday life. She draws on materials that originate from industrial or design contexts, where they are usually used functionally, for example to direct attention or create moods. In her works, these materials are detached from their original purpose and transferred into new spatial constellations. Between projection, object, and installation, situations arise in which color, light, and surfaces specifically influence perception and form sensory spaces of experience.

The presentation focuses on the so-called Carousel works, which Akdogan has been working on for many years. Several transparent layers of colored filters, plastics, and residual materials are mounted in slide frames and set in motion by projectors. The rotating elements create changing light images that do not show classic photographs, but rather abstract overlays of material, structure, and color. With each change in the sequence, visual impressions shift: tones change, lines break up, familiar surfaces suddenly appear unfamiliar. For the first time, numerous of these works are being shown together at Haus am Waldsee, combining across rooms to form a polyphonic installation.

About Rey Akdogan:

Rey Akdogan was born in Heilbronn, studied in Cologne, and now lives and works in New York. Her works range from installations and sculptures to projections, exploring perception, materiality, and media image spaces.

Highlight: This show is one of the top exhibitions in Berlin in 2026.

Runtime: Fri, 20/02/2026 to Mon, 25/05/2026

Takes place here:

• Haus am Waldsee