About Me
Materials
The materials I use are very important to me. I am exploring their power and their potential; how water, wax, thinner, bitumen, shellac and paint react with each other, and their effect on the paper or wood. The paints, the chemicals in my hand, have an energy of their own; they combine to build new colours; it is a process, a physical experiment. I let the chemicals go into the paper, investigating the physical character and limits of the materials.
When I am working I feel the materials and try to stay connected with that sensation and allow my feelings and the materials to guide the result. I feel for the reactions among the materials; these are also comparable with similar reactions in nature on a larger scale.
The end result of these vigorous physical interactions is calm, still and quiet.
Work
At the heart of my recent work is an investigation into the relationship between the tangible and the intangible and our ability to express or recognise one in the other.
I have curved flat surfaces of Somerset paper into three-dimensional objects — creating a cross between painting and sculpture that has given a different scope to my work. Putting two-dimensional work in three dimensions creates an inner space within the work that cannot be perceived; and an outer space that is shared with the observer.
The heavy paper is transformed by the chemicals in the paint and thinner, penetrating the surface to create something new. In some cases smoke is used, capturing the dying moment in the creation of fractal shapes on the paper. Their existence connects with my momentary existence, overlapping briefly in time with the materials to create something new and independent.
The work is what it is, with its own sombre presence, character and gravity. It is non-representational, a combination of paper and other elements, standing on its own merits.
Profile
The Triangle of Politics, Culture and Religion are central to my development as an artist. Born in Istanbul and educated in Turkey and Germany, later living in the Far East, the Middle East, and now resident in London, I’ve been involved in and affected by different cultures at each stage. My work concerns itself with the reality of existence and links to my other interests in science and the universe, the elements of nature and other naturally occurring forms.
Diploma in German Literature & Language
Istanbul University, Turkey
MA in Fine Arts
City & Guilds of London Art School, Britain
In 2010, I was elected to The London Group, a London-based collective of artists with a long and proud history of over 90 years and served a term as Vice President.
Short interview about my process