Ihsan Oturmak
Liste Year
Year of Birth
Country of Birth
Presented by
2021
1987
Turkey
Öktem Aykut
Ihsan Oturmak's work focused on themes like, oppression, emancipation, democracy, progress, development, belief and worship. Thanks to his subtle takes on the transformation of daily practices and traditions in Turkish and Kurdish societies, Oturmak's work was able to reveal inherent absurdities in Turkish modernization, hence in the notions of modernity, progress, development and tradition in general.
Ihsan Oturmak's technique of figuration may particularly distinguish itself through its use of light and the way it represents human bodies and spaces. His attempt to shed light to the dilemmas inherent in the discussion concerning identity and class in Turkish society. Oturmak's vision emancipates this discussion from its societal and cultural load and positions it within a more ontological and existentialist framework.
Alternative Resources (from the series Mesopotamia), 2017, Oil on canvas, 200x145 cm
After receiving his bachelor’s degree of Art and Crafts Teacher Education at Marmara University in 2012, Ihsan Oturmak (Diyarbakir, 1987) participated in residency programme at Cité Internationale des Arts, Paris. His works have been exhibited at international art events and institutions including Istanbul Design Biennial, Espace Cultural Louis Vuitton (Paris), Akbank Sanat, Municipality Art Gallery Halim Bey Mansion (Mytilene), Elgiz Museum, Kasa Gallery, Royal Academy (London), Mardin Biennial, Wienwoche (Vienna) and Galata Greek School (Istanbul). İhsan Oturmak had three solo exhibitions (Karavil Contemporary London in 2015, Depo in 2016 and Öktem Aykut in 2019) prior to Öktem Aykut's solo presentation in Liste, Art Fair Basel.
