Gamze Yalçın
Volatile
Exhibition from October 31st - November 15th, 2024
Curatorial support:
Aquiles Jarrin, Ventana Project
In a world where the forces of nature have entered into a clear tension with the human realm, the exhibition invites us to navigate the fragile and subtle aspects of this relationship. Human interactions with the planet not only impact its landscape but also influence the way we view it. We have transitioned from a romanticized vision of nature to one of complete appropriation, seeking to dominate and control it in all its facets. Gamze Yalçın explores how these environments affect and are affected not only in the geographic or aesthetic sense of how we perceive the world, but also in how this dynamic relationship creates affective atmospheres and reshapes our experience of life.
Here, the landscape is not merely a physical context; it is a complex hybrid system, a world we inhabit. Our relations and flow with nature often reflect back to us something of ourselves, suggesting that the boundaries between the external and internal worlds are more porous than we tend to acknowledge. This duality is central to Yalçın’s work, where the external world and the inner self are in constant conversation. It is perhaps this internal world that expresses itself outwardly, shaping how we engage with the natural world.
In this work, the canvases, functioning both as maps and as emotional diaries, construct a topography of the artist‘s personal experiences. The surfaces trace the physical terrain, as well as the emotional and psychological landscapes we traverse. They offer a more optimistic vision of how dialogue with nature can act as a mirror, reflecting back our most beautiful image, one in which we flow harmoniously with the unexpected, the cyclical, and life itself. This optimistic reflection suggests that through our engagement with the natural world, we might rediscover our essence, moving toward a more fluid, responsive, and integrated self.
Text:
Aquiles Jarrin
Gamze Yalçın (b. 1987, Istanbul) is a Berlin-based artist with a degree in Interior Architecture from Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University in Istanbul. Her artistic practice revolves around painting, drawing, and textile installation. Gamze’s work has been exhibited across Turkey, Europe, and Latin America, reflecting her ongoing exploration of space, color, and landscapes.
Gamze’s creative process involves research, observation, and careful execution, resulting in artwork that captures the patterns and spaces within nature and the ever-changing landscapes around us. Her exhibitions often feature thematic series inspired by timeless spaces, blending semi-abstract forms with natural patterns.
01: Unfolding, Acrylics and oil stick on cotton textile, stretched on wood panel, 50 x 60 cm, Berlin, 2024
02: Portrait Photo taken by Klara Kopeckova
03: Quiet Space, Acrylics and oil stick on cotton textile, stretched on wood panel, 30 x 60cm, Berlin, 2024