Young artists ‘Getting Even’ with state in season’s last show at Kasa Gallery

Işın Önol, the exhibit's curator, says that when an artist begins to exhibit his works internationally, he becomes a representative of his country across the globe, his name being uttered after that of his country. So an artist has to answer questions related to the political stance of his country, the curator explains. “Artists [are in a social position in which they] criticize political authorities in a country. Thus, the works featured in this exhibition should be seen as local stories rather than representing the [official] stances of these three countries or the points of view of these nations,” Önol explains in an interview with Today's Zaman.

Önol says the works in the show can be “billed as both hopeless and ironic at the same time.”

The Jerusalem-born Gruber's works seem to be hidden behind an ambiguous curtain, Önol explains. “Although they look very calm at first sight, they include a secret violence and a tension related to it,” she says, citing his pieces “Kikar Atarim,” “Manu and Dougie” and “Match Point.” The title of the exhibition also takes its name from one of Gruber's installations, though it is not included in this show.

Cypriot artist Lapithi's collection of photographs and videos, on the other hand, emphasize a subjective approach supported with political slogans. Her series, “Do you believe in water?” can be seen as a regional piece due to the social, economic and ecological concerns that are prevalent throughout the Middle East, the curator explains. “Both of Lapithi's videos are prepared with design details that can be seen in a culinary program on TV. The newspaper on which she prepares a dish and details its recipe in one of her videos shows a map of an undivided Cyprus,” the curator says, adding that the political perspective of the artist is opposed to nationalism and militarism.

The works of the İstanbul-born Kadirbeyoğlu delve into migration. Kadirbeyoğlu's art is nourished with visa problems faced by Turkish citizens while traveling to Western countries, Önol notes. “In his work featured in this show, Kadirbeyoğlu takes a variety of puppets representing various segments of the society -- including intellectuals, socialists, people from different ethnic backgrounds, pious Muslims and homosexuals -- puts them in a suitcase to send them to the European Union. All of these groups have rejected the status quo and demanded freedom, but they were crushed and punished by the state,” says the curator, explaining the story depicted in Kadirbeyoğlu's “EU,” pointing out that the EU represents relative freedom for those who are opposed to the status quo.

“If democracy is not exercised fully within a country, one cannot talk about freedom of conscience or free speech,” Kadirbeyoğlu says. “When this is the situation, one of the tasks of a state is to suppress the opinions that go against the authority. Unfortunately, this is the case in Turkey. In ‘EU,' I tried to delve into these pressures from the scope of relative freedom,” he says.

“Getting Even” will remain on view through June 27 at the Kasa Art Gallery on Bankalar Street in the Karaköy district.