Interview: Ege Serin
Luca Curci talks with Ege Serin during CONTEMPORARY VENICE 2021 at Palazzo Albrizzi-Capello.

Ege Serin is a plastic and digital artist based Istanbul. He attended to İstanbul Film Academy to study directing between 2018 to 2020. Serin blended his visual skills with his narratives, mixing different materials, and his passion of storytelling enable him to tell his stories more authentically by his artworks. The Artist’s works consist of different symbols and figures within a chaotic composition. They are neither completely figurative nor abstract. Serin made them intentionally in that way for a purpose. The reason of the vagueness in his paintings is that the audience creates their own stories, rather than the paintings tell them.

Luca Curci – What’s your background? What is the experience that has influenced your work the most?
Ege Serin – I first got involved in art through my family, in our house you could always hear something about art. Firstly However my family didn’t want me to be an artist. Even so I burned the bridges and focused on what I love and what i want to be. As i love my job the opportunities come, I choose my subjects mostly from my culture especially the problems that i see in my country, family and my life have a great influence over my artworks.

LC – How did you get to your current artistic practice?
ES – It actually developed through the time by its own way. I first started drawing in my childhood, my mother used to take lessons from some artists. I learned classical techniques from observing those lessons and through my mother. Then in my school years I was trying to find a way to convey my emotions and ideas that I can’t explain with words then find art as a way to express myself. I changed my style in a more authentic way. I deformed the objects and harmonise my works with my perception of my culture and my thoughts about the art and being a human.

LC – Do you use art to express something in particular? Is it like your medium of expression?
ES – Of course, I use it as a tool to express myself. My paintings consist of symbols and figures which are placed in chaotic compositions. They are neither completely figurative nor abstract, I made them intentionally in that way for a purpose. I strongly believe that we are inclined to attribute meanings to images, symbols, or someone without even taking into account how connected they are to the meaning. Therefore, even though the topics are important, the real purpose of vagueness is for people to create their own realities with figures they find or create, just like all narratives, religions or myths. Therefore, the purpose of these paintings – rather than the paintings telling their own stories- is to have the audience create their stories. For this reason, I have tried to offer a representation of the creative power of unconsciousness as well as the destructive force of that creativity with a unique tone independent from classical teachings of painting, within a complex composition.

LC – How do you feel when you see your work completed?
SE – It is a mesmerising emotion, I love creating things that reflects a part of my life, seeing your creation gives you an incredible emotion and happiness. I also love seeing other people who are interested in my works. Art makes me a very happy man and ı become more and more productive by virtue of it.

LC – Did your style change over the years? In which way?
SE – As I mentioned, I was painting more realistic pictures then it changed; I start to deform the objects and changing their solid stories. I love telling stories through my paintings but rather than the paintings telling their own stories I want to push the audience to create their own stories.

LC – Do you agree with our vision of art and what do you think about the theme of the festival?
SE – The theme of the festival was a perfect choice for me and my works I choose my drawing notedly for irony. Sisyphe is a very famous character in Greek mythology I think its story is a perfect representation of the modern man which try to live in the chaotic and kaleidoscopic atmosphere of modern cities like mine (İstanbul).

LC – Would you suggest a collaboration with us? What do you think about our services?
SE – It was a nice experience for me. Even though the exhibition was held in extraordinary circumstances, I didn’t have any problem with the services.

LC – Do you think this exhibition can represent an opportunity for artists?
SE – Yes, it has a great potential for many artists.

LC – Did you enjoy cooperating with us?
SE – Yes, now I’m waiting for London.