Alphabet of the Seven-Seer

8 December 2022 – 5 February 2023
Alphabet of the Seven-Seer
DG Art Project & Gallery
Curated by Şener Özmen

Seven Eyed Sun – Black, Sunstone Series
2022
Metal
150 x 96 x 91 cm

Seven Eyed Sun 1B – Red, Sunstone Series
2022
Metal
180 x 115 x 110 cm

Seven Eyed Sun 1C – Yellow, Sunstone Series
2022
Metal
210 x 134 x 128 cm

Gelene-ek 17
2021
Mixed Media
79 x 115 x 25 cm

Gelene-ek 21
2021
Mixed Media
90 x 163 x 42 cm

Voice from Heaven, Backyard of God Series
2022
Mixed Media
270 x 250 x 30 cm

Seven Voices of Sorrow, Backyard of God Series
2022
Mixed Media
300 x 330 x 30 cm

The works in the “Alphabet of the Seven-Seer” contain a symbolism in which the artist elaborates his understanding of mythology with a subtle, comprehensive, and compelling variety. Güneştekin retransforms symbols by interpreting them with mythology, which is the structural principle of his thinking. In his works, where he incorporates language into imagery and combines spiral structures with mythological images, patterns of migration and transformation in these symbols manifest themselves. The artist uses myths as a metalanguage, a way of seeing, to decipher and construct complex meanings.

Güneştekin’s passion for the space of the stars, light and time reveals itself in his sculptures where he works with metal forms. He allows the natural shapes and forces of the cosmos to shape his works while merging the time field with celestial phenomena. He incorporates celestial light and its working principles into virtually every aspect of his practice. While allowing for deeper interaction, the artist’s geometric sculptures of various configurations indicate that myths can continue to form bonds with the present moment.

The artist compresses past and present through myth’s placelessness, portability, and flexibility. The narrative has been derived from the past but can easily be translated into another language. While this invites the viewer to interpret and create meaning, the consciously felt guidance is not only caused by the myth but also by the dissimilarity of the artist’s interpretation. Güneştekin, while focusing on the aspects of myths that cross time, space, and cultures, gravitates towards reminding or re-exploring the meanings which may have often long receded into subconsciousness. For him, what arouses thoughts is sometimes the personal, but mostly the collective memory. Consequently, the artist’s works mediate between human memory and social memory.

Güneştekin explores ways to carry on the storytelling traditions while reproducing art forms to convey the stories wherein he weaved together the images he created from mythology. He reflects that objects are not only inanimate extensions possessing complicated feelings and memories of human beings but that they communicate through the stories engraved in them throughout their lives. The artist deepens the inseparable connection between the narrative and the practice through his patchwork, which is one of the earliest ways of storytelling. While leading the viewers to sense through the tactile experiences of his world, the artist creates his objects to prevent the stories he interpreted from being forgotten.

Myths always demand to be transplanted into the present and reinterpreted according to present-day ideas, and through this flexibility, they can be adapted to any time, context, or culture. According to Güneştekin, the myth’s capability of being deconstructed and remade allows us to connect with our subconscious memory, as it did in the past, and gives us the ability to convey meaning. Following these thoughts, the artist suggests that mythological creations belong not only to their times but to every moment and encourages us to reflect on the boundless values, collectively shared languages, and memories through his works.