A Splash of Color in the Streets of Ankara
Introduction to Ankara’s street art… Erin, Cem, and Gökhan are three young artists. On the spur of the moment, they grabbed materials and started to paint. Their inspiration was to instill art into the soul of the streets of Ankara. As humble artists, they do not call what they do as “art”. They’re not a collective, they make individual drawings.
What motivates them is that there is not much of “art” in the city – let alone street art. Their complaint is that, apart from a few sincere galleries, there isn’t any serious investment to art and a lack of support. The real art is lost in a small number of galleries, it has been turned away from the public, and became only accessible to a few. Therefore, art students are having cold feet and turning to other jobs or teaching.
They don’t have clear themes in their minds since they draw as it comes. There is one point they agree on, which is that this street art project is a result or reflection of evolving cognitive processes. If they have to give it a name, they categorize it as a part of the neo-expressionist movement. This is rather a way of life than an art trend, and it is reflected in their paintings.
They take their inspiration from their experiences. As locals, they show us that sometimes in this city we don’t even feel that we are living. It is not a challenge for them to find inspiration in every little corner.
Apart from their aim to add some art to the soul of the streets, another aim of them is to encourage people like themselves. They want to see works of others, regardless of quality and quantity. Moreover, they underline that they are also not at the stage to discuss the quality of their own work.
In order to prevent legal proceedings, they usually draw on specific places, usually construction boards.
Last but not least, let’s hear from these marvelous street artists themselves… “We grew up on these streets and believe that we have so much to give. In fact, everything is just beginning and you’ll see our street art more often!”
This article is available in Turkish. Click here to take a look!
