Irem Kinay grew up in Jakarta, Indonesia. She attended Wharton at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, lucky enough to go to College in a city which hosts art havens such as the Philadelphia museum of art, Barnes collection and the Rodin museum….
After graduating, Irem worked in New York for a few years, moving to London after Irem and Sina got married in 2000. They have been back to Istanbul for almost 10 years now, living with their daughter Mina in their home their art collection is mixed with books and treasures from their travels.
“Both New York and London years were instrumental in our appreciation of art and on our exciting journey of collecting. However the memories of my childhood in Asia probably had the most impact on our art collection. Inspired by a family friend and renowned Asian art collector who first introduced us to galleries in Hong Kong, travelling to Asia to discover new artists has become an exciting mission for me and my husband.
“Our collection consists of artwork by prominent Turkish contemporary artists as well as international artists, predominantly Chinese artists.
“I love the strong social messages embedded in the Chinese contemporary art. There is a big difference between solemn and serious and a lot of the artwork we have use sarcasm and humour to deal with very serious issues.
“I’m Assouline’s partner in Turkey for their publishing and retail business. Since 2010, I have collaborated with them on 5 titles from Turkey. As part of my business, we also collaborate with designers and artists in developing beautiful objects d’art. All of these books and objects are mixed at home with our art collection.
“Our home is really a mix of new and old collected over many years living and travelling abroad. I believe that our art collection also reflects our fascination with different cultures and a desire to bring back a piece of it into our home… I am very happy that Mina our 8 year old daughter is growing up amongst the influence of different cultures and artistic styles in our home. I hope that she grows up to appreciate differences in life.”
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