Editor’s thoughts

Bahadırhan Pekşen is a Turkish artist that poetically expresses his reality through working with earthy materials such as mud, ash, charcoal, wax, and pigments on cotton or linen canvas.
Last February, Turkey was devastated by an earthquake that caused destruction and loss of life. Bahadırhan was able to save some artworks that witnessed this tragic event and united them in the Reconstruction series, a set of artworks that experienced the earth, rain, wind, and sun of 3 different cities together in 3 years.
We had the chance to talk with the artist and hear his thoughts on this transformative event and cathartic series.

Who is Bahadırhan Pekşen?

BP: I think I am a bit like Istanbul, the city where I was born and grew up. I am a being who concentrates on the balance and harmony between the dualities in life such as east-west, chaos-calm, physics-metaphysics.
I am a lover. I am a father. I am a brother.
Before art, I worked in advertising for many years. I started all these creative movements as an apprentice in the Grand Bazaar atelier of my father, a jewelry designer, before university.

What’s the main intention behind the Reconstruction series?

BP: I am only now realizing that my intention is to accept the destroyed parts of me and rebuild myself and my life. I have been together with the canvas that makes up the structure of Reconstruction since 2020. During the outdoor process of creation, we experienced the earth, rain, wind, and sun of 3 different cities together in 3 years. With the pieces that reached the maturity I wanted, I started the studio process in Antakya Gülderen Village in May 2022.
Gülderen is a beautiful mountain village 8 km away from the city where my wife’s family lives. When I moved to Antakya a year ago, I transformed the place used as a warehouse in the village into a studio. I combined the red earth of the Leçe region in the hills of the village which are high in iron oxide, with oil paint and pigment processes in the studio. After 9 months of work, the first paintings of the series were finished in January 2023.
This series is the artistic expression of the reconstruction process in my life. Working on these artworks allowed me to concentrate on the basic cycle of destruction and construction in life, to feel the unity between the two concepts, and to expand the expression of my first works.

What kind of materials best materialize your intentions?

BP: This new series was made on raw cotton/linen canvas with earth, rain, wind, sun, and time, in the earth of Antakya, in the Amanos Mountains, on the floor of my studio, with natural materials such as oil paint, iron oxide pigment, pine turpentine, tree gum and the energies shared with me by the precious beings in my life. I am proud to say that mother earth gave the final touch to my paintings with forces of 7.4 and 7.6. You can see the scars she left on some of them, you can sense her presence in all of them.

Last February, Turkey was devastated by an earthquake that caused destruction and loss of life. How did this truly sad event change your life and creative practice?

BP: Our home, our studio was destroyed. We witnessed the demolition of an ancient city that carries thousands of years of memory of the human species from the Neolithic period until today, on hundreds of thousands of people. Yes, this was an experience that shook our lives to the core. We are thankful to be together and alive.
Now, after the destruction, the reconstruction process begins. After saving the artworks and taking photos and videos, we came to our friend’s house in Izmir/Çeşme. Here we are resting, planning our new life, and working on new collaborations. We will return to Antakya in May. We are continuing our workflow and creative practices with a productive mindset as a family, adapting them to our current circumstances in order to heal ourselves. My son is only 2.5 years old. And at the top of the to-do list is to create a safe family home and living space in harmony with nature. So working hours are increasing and my creative practice is inevitably expanding into architecture, dear Rita.

‘Reconstruction’ series witnessed and survived this tragic event. How did this experience change your perception of this series?

BP: It is not easy for me to say this, but I want to share it because I think it has a healing effect; I am deeply proud of this series and its story, which deepened after the earthquake. It is the first time I have experienced this sense of pride and the peace of mind that comes from believing in and trusting the artistic expression in my work.

Reconstruction Series by Bahadırhan Pekşen Series of seven artworks made on raw cotton/linen canvas with earth, rain, wind, sun, and time, in the earth of Antakya, in the Amanos Mountains, with natural materials such as oil paint, iron oxide pigment, pine turpentine, tree gum. To enquire/purchase please contact Bahadırhan through Email or Instagram.

Interview with Bahadırhan Pekşen | Videos/Images by Bahadırhan Pekşen.