Olcay Kuş’s third solo exhibition at Art On İstanbul, “Yokuş Yukarı”, brings together the artist’s recent works that study social moods through streets, media, identities, and gestures. The exhibition is on view from January 14 to February 18.
In “Yokuş Yukarı”, Olcay Kuş takes the observations of daily life, streets, and media language familiar from her previous exhibitions to a new level. The effects of political uncertainty, negativity, and the chaos created by uncontrollable time on society are addressed in her works with a style that is at times distant and indifferent, at times ironic and critical. As societal problems intensify day by day, the resulting individual and collective silence becomes the central theme of the exhibition.
Upon entering the gallery, visitors encounter a stencil work directly applied to the wall, referencing the street. The exhibition is divided into three sections: drawings that served as experiments for larger works, sculptures made of paper pulp, and canvases. The drawings reveal the artist’s preliminary research, technical explorations, and relationship with color and figure, while also referencing her other works. On her canvases, the laughter of faceless individuals and the suppressed emotions of the majority in response to the ironic gestures and body movements of those in power are expressed.
Inspired by street art aesthetics, Kuş uses newspaper and spray paint, amplifying the emphasis on body language through bold colors and distinct stencils. Additionally, she presents for the first time her amorphous sculpture series “Geride Kalanlar” (“Those Left Behind”), created with polyurethane foam and paper pulp, inspired by various toys.
Following her previous exhibitions “Sıradan Bir Gün” and “Oyun Merkezi”, Olcay Kuş continues to share with the audience the emotional atmosphere of the era she witnesses in her new exhibition, “Yokuş Yukarı.”
