10 Questions with Göksel Doğan

Göksel Doğan is a Turkish professional sculptor and underground artist. He studied at the Sculpture department, Faculty of Fine Arts, of the Hacettepe University, graduating in 2015. He has exhibited his works in Turkey and abroad, and won the second prize at the Leaveheavenalone Documentary 2011 award, by the Ministry of Culture for the “Nature” themed short film competition.

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ARTIST STATEMENT

As a professional underground artist, he produces cartoons, posters, graphics, fanzines, and webzines. He also knows well about architecture since he studied until the third grade. He is decoding “meaning” throughout the found objects and collages, and he calls this self-process of decapitalization of things (an attempt to reproduce human meaning against capitalist means of production by using sculptural elements.). What capitalism creates is just fearful for humans.

INTERVIEW

First of all, tell us about your background. When did you start getting involved with visual arts, and how?

Like most artists, I started to get involved with art during childhood, but professionally it started as a habit when I attended the architecture department. First, I concentrated on drawing, then the rest came. Sculpture and architecture are my backgrounds in that sense, but I think making art started in childhood; it's like a completion of it in adulthood.

You are an underground artist, what is the most challenging part about your career path?

Not having a gallery, the lack of professional galleries where I can establish some kind of artist-gallery relations. This doesn't mean my works are unprofessional, but they are mainly produced and exhibited with self-effort. Most artists have to do this in my country because of obscurantist governments that don't care about contemporary art like what I made. Our production is highly oppressed by these governmental policies. Freedom of speech is another issue, it is simulated as if there was one if you are a proponent of the power, but in reality, many artists and singers are put in jail because of their speech. I think contemporary art in Turkey has the same problem simulated as if there is one but under such conditions with oppression under cultural annihilation.

Gargoyılpark [Gargoland], Painted foam and found materials, 189x100x45 cm, 2016 © Göksel Doğan

How would you define yourself as an artist nowadays, and what is your personal aim?

A responsible one that really cares about ecology and society. Today's artists are under such circumstances that past artists didn't feel with such intensity, since climate change wasn't seen through the eyes and was just a concern in the past. Today, climate change can be observed with eyes, every day is a disaster for one part of the world. The possible extinction of humankind is much more realistic than the past. Foucault said, "society must be defended". But to me, my personal aim is to defend a sustainable future.

What themes do you pursue with your art?

There are three main themes that can be read as one general category. The first is the decapitalisation of things, which is a process, a figural approach through everyday objects. The second is an unmystified surrealism like Réne Magritte had. And the third is an inside-out process through self-expression.
These three themes lead to the political side of the self, which provokes freedom of thought and expression and takes politics as a lifestyle. Political existence, in that sense, is my main theme. As you see, the expression always comes with thought, they are inseparable in the mind since the presentation is the dissolution of thought and dreams. And finally, conception is what you create with these dreams, thoughts, and expressions.

What is your creative process like? And what is the most challenging part of your project?

Artist's production is different from the production of society, as it is a self-production, not a mass production. It is an inside-out process, through which I can act fearlessly since it's a dream state.
Originality is important because it gives the artwork its uniqueness and character. Originality also is about the philosophy of the artwork, not just about style. I always try to approach this philosophical and expressive balance while making my works.
The most challenging part about making Gargoyles was that I was looking for something cheap to work with, so I started researching how to sculpt with styrofoam. Then all I needed was just an electrical tool that warms up to cut the foams. I was able to make everything with what I learned from DIY videos and my self-creativity. And in the end, I managed to do a sculpting tool with a wine opener.

Is there anything you would like to experiment with?

I would like to experiment with drawing the cities where I still haven't been to. Drawing is a good tool to learn about a city, like photography, because it is not a slow process in the beginning. I think with watercolors, it could be as fast and detailed as taking photographs.

Do you find that the shift to digital exhibitions and art fairs has helped you promote your work?

Digital life surely makes exhibiting easier. Although I haven't been in any of them, I use digital technologies to exhibit my works and my websites.

What do you think about the art community and market?

There is a lack of globalization. In the age of globalization, Art isn't globally growing well. Art communities stuck in certain countries and many shifts from democracies have affected this much. Making contemporary art is already political. So it must be constructed as the substructure of democracy. But we see a going back in most democracies. Turkey, who claimed to be established under contemporary policies, also lost its culture where the system evolved into another culture that claims nothing but only itself is the true culture. Artists who claim art is universal must focus on this, and art is something that should be democratically constructed. Otherwise we can lose it like in Afghanistan.

Any projects you are looking forward to for this year?

I am thinking of modeling a surreal utopia that is unpragmatic, unwell, sustainable, simple, but colored.

Finally, share something you would like the world to know about you.

I wanted to share my mom's message. She is really complaining about freedom of speech in Turkey. "I wish people to talk and travel freely all around the world".

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