How can you ban my existence
2025, Istanbul
Valentin Sohn portrayed and interviewed artists in Istanbul in the
spring of 2025 - just weeks after nationwide protests against the
government. “How Can You Ban My Existence” documents a
young, disillusioned generation that no longer feels represented
by an increasingly conservative and authoritarian regime. The
protagonists speak of an uncertain future, life abroad, arrested
friends, art as a form of resistance, and their longing for “Hak,
hukuk, adalet!”—rights, law, justice.
“How can you ban my existence” was presented as a handbound book in the 2026 Exhibition “Yol - der Weg” in Bielefeld.