Founded in 2011, m-est.org is an online publication, conceived as an artist-centered initiative.

Works by artists, studio visits, articles based on and related to conversations on visual practices are published on m-est.org, imagined as a virtual discussion space.

Artists and cultural practitioners trace issues of concern or curiosity publicly on m-est.org. The focus on artists from Turkey reiterates a widening network of people, starting with where we are, to explore where we are going to go, limited only by our own interests, associations, and affinities.

m-est, originally a Persian word used in Turkish, signifies a state of drunkenness. Here, it refers to that “other” state of mind in conversation. The word also functions as a shortened version of “middle-east” as many practitioners, including ourselves, struggle with regionalism, or lack thereof.

One of the founding principles of m-est.org is that it is and always will be free to access online.

Merve Ünsal is the main editor, closely collaborating with the managing editor Özge Ersoy, contributing editors and artists.

To say hi, contactmest [at] gmail.com.

m-est.org received the SAHA Sustainability Fund in 2016 and 2022, and a Foundation for Arts Initiatives grant in 2016.