06 Oct 2010

YASAM SASMAZER: It's so complicated at Berlin Art Projects

Solo exhibition 'Yasam Sasmazer: It's so complicated' at Berlin Art Projects
October to November 2010
Opening | Saturday | 9 October 2010, 4 to 10 pm | Project Space | Auguststrasse 50 B | 10119 Berlin

Berlin Art Projects is pleased to announce the opening of 'It's so complicated' the first solo exhibition in Germany by young Turkish sculptor Yasam Sasmazer. Please stop by the opening on Saturday, 9 October 2010 from 4 to 10 pm at our Project Space | Auguststraße 50 B | 10119 Berlin Mitte!

At the center of the exhibition are five wooden sculptures, all life-sized depictions of children in various stages of their adolescence. Inhibition and insecurity are reflected in their faces. The world of children these sculptures show is a far cry from pure happiness and naiveté, it is influenced by the same existential uncertainties that come along with adulthood. In 'Ancient Fruit', a boy and a girl stand helplessly facing one another. Seduction is tempting, though the first feelings of guilt stand in the way.

Sasmazer's works are like essays on the individual and his position in society. Their children are not pure souls per se. On the contrary, in the artist's characteristic humorous but direct way, she shows how small children are almost violently pressured into the social structures that are passed from one generation to another. This is especially apparent in the 'Brothers' group of sculptures, where the other brother is seen assuming the role of a parent. The artist uses childhood as a magnifying glass with which she investigates the clichés and stereotypes inherent in our society. The world of children is presented like as a kind of micro world that assigns the role that determines identity, as we see in 'Introduction of Ladyship' and 'Weight Lifter'. In this work Sasmazer shows not the process of becoming oneself but rather the imposition of expectations from the outside by which people identify themselves. Qualities like beauty and strength are the key to functioning in society, even when they are painful in practice. In Sasmazer's figures, growing up means adapting and fitting into the world of adults. Though behind his mask the 'guardian', despite the appearance of strength, is still always and only a child.

Yasam Sasmazer (*1980, Istanbul) completed her studies in sculpture at the Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University under Prof. Rahmi Aksungur and Prof. Hizal. In 2010 she exhibited, among other places, at the Kunsthaus Erfurt and the LTMH Gallery (New York). Upcoming solo exhibitions are planned at the Kunstverein Elmshorn and the Gesellschaft für Bildende Kunst Trier, along with group exhibitions at the Museo Pino Pascali in Bari and the Saatchi Gallery London. The artist lives and works in Istanbul and Berlin.


In addition, you will also find information about a group exhibition in Erfurt featuring two of the artists' sculptures:

BEYAZ KAOS | WHITE OUT

Contemporary positions of eight established and up-coming artists with Turkish origins. Curated by Eva Liedtjens and Cassandra Mehlhorn www.beyaz-kaos.net

19 October – 19 November 2010
OPENING FRIDAY | 15 October 2010 | 8 PM | kunsthaus erfurt | michaelisstrasse 34 | 99084 erfurt | Tu – FR 12 am – 6 pm | www.kunsthaus-erfurt.de