Interview about my practice

Solange and Cihad

S: Can you start with what you are doing in general? Can you do an overview about your works? And you can tell more about specific one.

C: Thank you. Actually in the past, I focus on my identity and my origin. I produced three or four works which are using identity. Certainly, I am interested in “Production of Space”. Shift from identity to this idea I produced a work, which contains two concepts. I am exhibition this work in Hannover. Let me explain little bit, it is a dark room full of soil and there is a light box that is hanged on the wall. You can see the whole space with the light of the light box. I started to think about production of space with this work. Now I am searching for new mediums in order to find best ones.

S: Let’s go back for a second. I want to talk about mediums. What kind of mediums do you use, in your works?

C: I am interdisciplinary artist, I am not just working a specific medium but if I say, photography, video, installation, book, sound.

S: So, how do you choose your medium?

C: It is good question. It is hard to decide it actually at the beginning because for me first I make research about the idea second I look for good medium for my idea. I always have this process. For instance, for Production of space idea, when I started to read about it, I was also thinking about the medium that could fit to my project. First result of this research was “Disorientation” sound work. You really produce surround space for your audience.

S: So you are also following from concept to medium?

C: Yeah, as I said. For me during my research I am experiencing different mediums in order to find best one. It needs to be physical object that I can feel with my sense of hearing, seeing, touching. That’s why if the idea is reached to efficient peak I started to experience mediums. If it is still too abstract on my mind I wait little bit more.

S: But for you sound installation you cannot see it?

C: Yeah you right you cannot see it but it is also about perception and different senses.

S: It is imaginary then? Is imaginary always part of your projects?

C: Himm, not part of all of them but when I produced a space it is becoming imaginary for the audience. For my last video work, I am going to work with vertical video that I shot. Last week I was talking with Steve about this new project and I got a new idea from Steve. I am going to use mirror to reflect my videos in the space that I am going to produce. S: It is also production of your works, production of screen, production of sound.

C: Yeah, you right. Space is important for me because, you live in a space, you eat in a space, it surrounds you. Museums and galleries are also spaces, I want to produce a space in this spaces.

S: Your spaces have always walls. Don’t you consider garden as a space?

C: I don’t want to work ,which I cannot control. For the spaces that I am working with, I can control them. That’s why always I use dark spaces. If there is a day light I cannot control it.

S: It is really good point. I think you are conscious about the spaces that you are using. How do you come to your concepts? How do you develop your ideas? How do you start it?

C: If I started to from my past I want to explore my origin then it turned into art project. It was spontaneous I would say. But for now, the disconnection between my origin and me turned me into this space issue. Because looking for your origin is also sort of looking for the space where you are coming from. The room that I made for my Root project is about the disconnection. The soil in the room is rootles, you cannot grow something on it. Light is coming from light box and lighten the room. Soil is me light is my origin. It is there but it is not lightening me enough.

I would say I am almost done with that project that’s why I am working on different spaces.

S: Is it clear for the audience? Can they see this connection? What do you want to say them?

C: I want them to experience this space first. Because if I put the text next to the entrance, you will read and see everything before you go. You will wear glass of the main idea before you go inside and I don’t want this especially for this work.

S: You want them to have clear mind before they go inside?

C: Yeah, exactly. When you are in this room, it is colder that outside and you see the coldness of the disconnection with my root. If you like it, you read the text after you experience.

S: Do you mention, this is me, this is this in the text?

C: No I don’t do that. Let me explain why, If I serve the all the meal together, you cannot get the taste of foods. It is same for me. I want to leave a place for my audience, to think about the work. That’s why I wanted to produce this room, they can play with the room, have relation with it, can spend time in there.

S: I want to hear more about your last project. You mentioned it. Can you say more about it?

C: I am still in developing process. I am going to shot vertical videos, maybe reflection of the moon, to projecting into mirror and reflecting it again. Normally you look up to see the moon, but for this you will look down or to walls. I am still working on it.

S: You can experiment it. It sounds nice.

C: I will do it. I will play with it.

S: Do you have any idea of your final project? Can you say something about it, if you have?

C: It is still not clear what I am going to do for next year but I know it is going to be related to Production of the Space.