10 September - 10 October 2022, Pg Art Gallery
A Symphony of Vivid Sounds
Where do the forms we encounter every day, everywhere, without pause, truly come from? Do they descend from the heavens, or do they spring forth from the depths of the earth? Is form merely a tool the human mind uses to make sense of the world, or is it the outcome of nature’s own way of bringing things into being? Perhaps humans have abstracted and invented forms as a way to store and retrieve the countless chaotic impressions of the outside world. The infinite singularities of the universe have been transformed into abstract forms to ease the burden of human comprehension. And yet, in nature there is no perfect circle, no perfect line, no perfect square—still, is there not a divine beauty hidden in the shape of a crystal or a flower? Wherever their source may lie, forms seem to pause within the human memory, gathering there. Art is the uniquely human act of adding the thinnest of differences to these stored forms—an almost imperceptible shift that opens the doors to novelty and revolution. This difference cannot be reached by reason alone; the body must take part. These two seemingly opposing forces of modern thought—the mind and the body—work together, kneading the overwhelming data flowing in from the outside world through our senses, and from this collaboration the artwork is born.
The forms Günnur Özsoy creates are born of conversation. They take shape at a table where the rules of reason, the tides of the spirit, and the offerings of nature all sit together. These forms are singular. They do not aspire to be transcendental, perfect, or universal; and yet they always manage to be beautiful. They are rational, but never cold or mechanical. While they draw inspiration from nature, they are not representations of it. They are born from the encounter between the artist’s body and nature itself. The body’s powers enter into collaboration with the laws of matter. At the same time, reason reins in the spirit, and the spirit liberates reason.
Human memory is shaped largely by what comes through the eye, and the fine arts have been primarily visual arts. But what if, in our conversation with the outside world, we used our ears before our eyes? Would the world present itself to us in the same forms? Would the circle still be the circle we know, would the square remain the square? Likely not. Günnur Özsoy’s exhibition “Es Ver, Ses Ver” (Pause, Give Voice) adds an auditory dimension to sculpture, a medium that is otherwise visual and tactile. Here, sound does not reveal itself as something that can be heard by the human ear, but is kept hidden within the sculptures as a possibility. Though the sculptures are still and silent, they enter memory accompanied by an imagined resonance, a faint echo. Their forms are shaped not only through seeing but also through a kind of listening.
Sound is born of the vibrations of matter. As long as there is movement, there is sound. When humans shape the world to make it a home, they give form to matter, and this process is inevitably noisy. The more sudden or intense the transformation, the louder the sound. And yet, once the process of becoming is complete and the transforming motion gives way to stillness, sound diminishes until it almost vanishes into the void. The gestures that brought Günnur Özsoy’s sculptures into being have now fallen silent. The forms born of bending and shaping metal plates stand before us without moving. Silent as they are, they seem ready to move, ready to make sound at any moment. They appear as if they are the embodied form of a specific sound, and at the same time they open themselves to the vibrations and sounds yet to come.
For sound to exist, two atoms must come into contact—but sound also requires an interval, an empty space, for it is born in the void, thanks to the void. In materials whose atoms are packed tightly together, sound is minimal. Sound depends not only on contact but also on a measure of distance and difference. Yet as distance and difference grow too great, sound fades again. Sound is only possible within an optimum interval—not too close, not too far, not too similar, not too different. From this perspective, sound offers a metaphor for society and production as well. Singular existences can function and produce sound only when they are together, but they must preserve both their distance and their difference. To be together is not to be one. To be one is to seek a totality that erases all differences, to long for a silence of absolute unity. To be together, however, requires difference as a precondition: to remain distinct, to make contact with the other, but also to keep a slight distance, to pause, to bend and give way—this is essential for sound to exist. The works in “Es Ver, Ses Ver” are both similar and different from one another. What differentiates them is not only their colors but also the nature of the material itself. The sound waves that seem to travel across their surfaces make each one unique, yet their forms still allow them to create harmony together.
The empty spaces within the sculptures are an essential part of the works. It is thanks to these voids that the metal plates can pause, can flex. Sound, too, is made possible by these voids—first filling the gallery, then spilling out into the streets and merging with the world. The industrial neighborhood where Günnur Özsoy produces and exhibits her works is itself a place where countless forms of production occur, where the sounds born of these processes merge into an improvised composition. Just as the sound of the sculptures leaks into the neighborhood, the sounds of the neighborhood seep into the empty interiors of the sculptures, vibrating the pieces suspended from the ceiling, giving them sound. Even if these sounds are nearly imperceptible to the human ear, they are there—ready to echo in the halls of memory with just a bit of imagination.
Whether they descend from the heavens or spring from the depths of the earth, forms become human through the power of imagination. Imagination bends and stretches them, pushes their limits, transforms them into a world we can inhabit. Whether manifesting as art or as craft, imagination is the driving force of original creation. The sculptures gathered under the title “Es Ver, Ses Ver” come into being at the intersection of craft and art. Through these works, Özsoy gives material presence to sound, to the uniqueness it carries, and to the possibilities of being-together that sound makes possible—inviting visitors to step into her world. “Es Ver, Ses Ver” is more than an exhibition; it is a proposal for a way of being.
Murat Alat 03.09.2022
Where do the forms we encounter every day, everywhere, without pause, truly come from? Do they descend from the heavens, or do they spring forth from the depths of the earth? Is form merely a tool the human mind uses to make sense of the world, or is it the outcome of nature’s own way of bringing things into being? Perhaps humans have abstracted and invented forms as a way to store and retrieve the countless chaotic impressions of the outside world. The infinite singularities of the universe have been transformed into abstract forms to ease the burden of human comprehension. And yet, in nature there is no perfect circle, no perfect line, no perfect square—still, is there not a divine beauty hidden in the shape of a crystal or a flower? Wherever their source may lie, forms seem to pause within the human memory, gathering there. Art is the uniquely human act of adding the thinnest of differences to these stored forms—an almost imperceptible shift that opens the doors to novelty and revolution. This difference cannot be reached by reason alone; the body must take part. These two seemingly opposing forces of modern thought—the mind and the body—work together, kneading the overwhelming data flowing in from the outside world through our senses, and from this collaboration the artwork is born.
The forms Günnur Özsoy creates are born of conversation. They take shape at a table where the rules of reason, the tides of the spirit, and the offerings of nature all sit together. These forms are singular. They do not aspire to be transcendental, perfect, or universal; and yet they always manage to be beautiful. They are rational, but never cold or mechanical. While they draw inspiration from nature, they are not representations of it. They are born from the encounter between the artist’s body and nature itself. The body’s powers enter into collaboration with the laws of matter. At the same time, reason reins in the spirit, and the spirit liberates reason.
Human memory is shaped largely by what comes through the eye, and the fine arts have been primarily visual arts. But what if, in our conversation with the outside world, we used our ears before our eyes? Would the world present itself to us in the same forms? Would the circle still be the circle we know, would the square remain the square? Likely not. Günnur Özsoy’s exhibition “Es Ver, Ses Ver” (Pause, Give Voice) adds an auditory dimension to sculpture, a medium that is otherwise visual and tactile. Here, sound does not reveal itself as something that can be heard by the human ear, but is kept hidden within the sculptures as a possibility. Though the sculptures are still and silent, they enter memory accompanied by an imagined resonance, a faint echo. Their forms are shaped not only through seeing but also through a kind of listening.
Sound is born of the vibrations of matter. As long as there is movement, there is sound. When humans shape the world to make it a home, they give form to matter, and this process is inevitably noisy. The more sudden or intense the transformation, the louder the sound. And yet, once the process of becoming is complete and the transforming motion gives way to stillness, sound diminishes until it almost vanishes into the void. The gestures that brought Günnur Özsoy’s sculptures into being have now fallen silent. The forms born of bending and shaping metal plates stand before us without moving. Silent as they are, they seem ready to move, ready to make sound at any moment. They appear as if they are the embodied form of a specific sound, and at the same time they open themselves to the vibrations and sounds yet to come.
For sound to exist, two atoms must come into contact—but sound also requires an interval, an empty space, for it is born in the void, thanks to the void. In materials whose atoms are packed tightly together, sound is minimal. Sound depends not only on contact but also on a measure of distance and difference. Yet as distance and difference grow too great, sound fades again. Sound is only possible within an optimum interval—not too close, not too far, not too similar, not too different. From this perspective, sound offers a metaphor for society and production as well. Singular existences can function and produce sound only when they are together, but they must preserve both their distance and their difference. To be together is not to be one. To be one is to seek a totality that erases all differences, to long for a silence of absolute unity. To be together, however, requires difference as a precondition: to remain distinct, to make contact with the other, but also to keep a slight distance, to pause, to bend and give way—this is essential for sound to exist. The works in “Es Ver, Ses Ver” are both similar and different from one another. What differentiates them is not only their colors but also the nature of the material itself. The sound waves that seem to travel across their surfaces make each one unique, yet their forms still allow them to create harmony together.
The empty spaces within the sculptures are an essential part of the works. It is thanks to these voids that the metal plates can pause, can flex. Sound, too, is made possible by these voids—first filling the gallery, then spilling out into the streets and merging with the world. The industrial neighborhood where Günnur Özsoy produces and exhibits her works is itself a place where countless forms of production occur, where the sounds born of these processes merge into an improvised composition. Just as the sound of the sculptures leaks into the neighborhood, the sounds of the neighborhood seep into the empty interiors of the sculptures, vibrating the pieces suspended from the ceiling, giving them sound. Even if these sounds are nearly imperceptible to the human ear, they are there—ready to echo in the halls of memory with just a bit of imagination.
Whether they descend from the heavens or spring from the depths of the earth, forms become human through the power of imagination. Imagination bends and stretches them, pushes their limits, transforms them into a world we can inhabit. Whether manifesting as art or as craft, imagination is the driving force of original creation. The sculptures gathered under the title “Es Ver, Ses Ver” come into being at the intersection of craft and art. Through these works, Özsoy gives material presence to sound, to the uniqueness it carries, and to the possibilities of being-together that sound makes possible—inviting visitors to step into her world. “Es Ver, Ses Ver” is more than an exhibition; it is a proposal for a way of being.
Murat Alat 03.09.2022