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KUTLUG ATAMAN |
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Reem Fekri |
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Kutlug Ataman: Obstacles are inspiring. My art practice has always been a strong part of who I am. Who I am is not something I can give up, even if I wanted to. Therefore creating obstacles to individuals are useless and counterproductive exercises, not just an abuse of power. Only archaic societies and ignorant bureaucrats and politicians resort to such shameful methods today. On the other hand, people who resist such obstacles are not necessarily heroic in any way. As I said, there is nothing one can do about one’s identity and conscience even if one wanted to. It is not a decision up to an individual to give up one’s thoughts. For that reason, I assume, and this is only an assumption, unfortunate events that I had to go through in the past, a very distant past by now, could not stop me from being who I am today and must have inspired me in many ways in the past. I would have wished that those who committed those shameful acts and those who attempt to do so today have faced justice. Unfortunately Turkey has not matured to that degree yet but there is great and real hope at last. For the first time steps are being taken to prosecute the ex-generals who are accused to have cooperated with the Turkish mafia and conspired against the state and the public, under the pretension of patriotism. A secret sate within the state was discovered and there seems to be a real will to unearth it. I hope this will is not abandoned. In addition to that, voices are finally being raised to bring the military coup leaders to justice, who is still exempt from any legal investigation. It is my hope that sooner or later Turkish justice will condemn them, as they already are in the conscience of the large part of the public.
RF: Your practice is a hybrid of documentary and fiction, whilst the subjects in your film are largely disenfranchised and disempowered – how do you consider classical and traditional genre restraints or limitations in your practice?
KA: The reason I found a home for myself in the art world was that, at least 10 years ago, I had felt that this was a world of freedom and genuine research. The art world was less commercial when I had first started and there was still a lot of room for my kind of creativity. This room became increasingly smaller lately, with the increasing consumerism and the overall banality that came with it. So terrible the arrogance of money has become that assuming anti-intellectual positions became de rigueur gestures. I shall never forget a dealer advising me a few years ago that I ‘should try to make more seductive art,’ really meaning, more object based beautiful and expensive kitsch. In many ways, if you think about it, economical demands and pressures have an effect on form. Classical and traditional formats come hand in hand with this kind of anti-intellectual consumerism and shortsightedness. It does not allow experimentation, creativity and freedom. It is all about object based consumerism travestying as art. This was an unfortunate period in the art world, and a true litmus test for dealers, curators, museums and artists alike. To me, this atmosphere was the real limitation and test for serious artists. Now the economical climate is changing rapidly again. I do not know exactly what kind of effect this will have on the art world in general. It may be that the moment disappears or art objects may come to be perceived an even more secure investment tool. I do not know. I hope on the other hand that the corrupting effect of the feeding frenzy will be replaced by going back to the basics. And too bad for all the money that’s been wasted on kitsch. That money is now gone down the drain.
RF: Do you see subjects in your work as an extension of yourself?
KA: Yes I do. I believe that this is the only way I can truly empathize with them. I know this is against the very nature of the word empathy. I do however feel more confident about working with people with whom I feel I share similar experiences, obsessions, personality traits, worries, etc. For me this is essential before I can select a subject. For this reason I always see myself in my own works, through my subjects.
RF: The Economist labeled you as the Pedro Almodavar of the art world – how did you react to this?
KA: On one hand it is a great honor for me to be likened to one of the most talented and great film directors in the world working today, by a magazine that I like to read. On the other hand I find such remarks worrisome. Have you ever wondered why anyone who is not originally from the West and has achieved something can only be evaluated by way of comparing to an already existing western reference, even with good intentions? This remark was unfair to Pedro Almodavar, and also to me. So much so that Almadovar is one of my most adored directors, but my name is not Pedro. By the way, I still read The Economist.
More worryingly though, I find such praise really too limiting. Recently I made a piece called Turkish Delight, in which I don a belly dancer’s outfit and try to dance a dance I never learnt. The act itself is not comical, but tragi-comic. Rather it’s a slap in the face of such lazy euro-centric positions. It is the auto portrait of an artist, myself, who has to respond to market forces today, who can find validity only through modifying himself down to market expectations, exoticism, ‘seduction’, and other brandings and stereotipifications. When I show this piece in the non-western world, its meaning cuts through everything else and immediately. It is understood and heart felt. When I show it in the west, there is only one measure they use: whether it is funny or not! It could have no other meaning! These are supposed to be learned curators, writers and critics! To me, this is a very sad position to find oneself in. Art world has become very shallow indeed in the last few years. This is sadder than me having to be ‘seductive’ by wearing a belly-dancing outfit and trying to dance on those high heels. And this is why it is not a dance, but a slap. It is a ‘wake up, dammit’ kind of slap!
RF: How does the narrative style of Turkish literature influence or impact your work?
KA: I like circles and I am always attracted to circular structures that bring the head and the tail together, where oppositions become one. A closed circle is a perfect concept for me.
RF: Who are your biggest influences?
KA: I am influenced by what is commonly referred to as ordinary people and their ordinary lives.
RF: How does changing social and political climates affect your artistic practice?
KA: As a social being, I am first influenced by these changes and I am sure it must have an effect on the way I interact with the world and my practice.
RF: What kind of response do you hope your project will achieve at Art Dubai?
KA: Nothing other than what I always hope, an intellectual response with a healthy and balanced dose of criticism and praise.
RF: What advice could you give to future video artists / documentary makers?
KA: I wish I could have an answer for this but I don’t. If I had any advice I think I would give it to myself first. People think that because I achieve things I must know something, but I really don’t. I follow my natural instincts and I have no formulas.
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