A Name And A Place

Swiss artist Renée Levi, born in Istanbul in 1960, returned there in September 2022 to open two exhibitions and install a public artwork. Levi, who moved to Switzerland at six, often reflects on her birthplace and Sephardic heritage in her art. Known for naming each piece after a woman, she has gained acclaim in abstract expressionism, particularly for her public art in Switzerland and exhibitions across Europe.

The documentary A Name and A Place follows Levi’s two weeks in Istanbul, capturing her exhibition setups, city wanderings, family history, and collaborations with partner Marcel Schmid and musician Janiv Oron. Through this lens, themes of femininity, migration, Istanbul, and creative labor emerge.