Break down walls: French artist paints Istanbul

Istanbul has become the eighth stop of the Beyond Walls Project, an initiative by French artist Saype to shed light on the common bonds shared by humanity as a whole.

Saype invented 100% biodegradable paint that allows him to make giant frescos on the grass.

As part of the project launched in 2019, he paints interlaced hands at various spots across the world to "symbolically create the largest human chain in the world".

The walls in our minds are "fictive partitions", he says on his website.

Over a period of several years, he will make stops in 30 cities and invite people "to mutual aid, kindness and to live together".

Saype told Anadolu Agency that art is a very important tool in communication.

“In the current conjuncture people start to become more polarized and more alienated. I hope that my work will have a significant impact, so I aim to support people's efforts to come together and do something together,” he said.

“Istanbul is the eighth stage of the journey Beyond the Walls. The importance of Istanbul in terms of geopolitics is indisputable. It is where many cultures and people meet, and it is a great symbol of my project,” he added.

In Istanbul, three frescos were painted; at Bogazici University, the Golden Horn of the Bosphorus, and Beykoz district on the Asian side.

A photo exhibition for the project will open for visitors at Taksim Square on Nov. 8 and at the French Cultural Center on Istiklal Street on Nov. 7.

Previous stops for the project were Paris, Andorra, Geneva, Berlin, Ouagadougou, Yamoussoukro and Turin.