Deniz Say

Instagram: @denizsay_art

My paintings are actually expressionist manipulation of earthly materials…

What excites me is to transform ordinary materials into extraordinary and evocative works of art…

Because objects, like people, have memories, they are talented, in fact, they’re more valuable than they seem, each contains sociological clues.

They’ve a common perception in our minds; but what if they’re placed in a work of art in such a way as to distort that perception? If they appear in front of a viewer with a different identity, wouldn’t they induce him/her to think?

But what if these objects are actually “waste” materials?

I’ve always looked at the objects we call waste from a different perspective. For me, they were objects waiting to be part of life again, looking forward to be the beginning of a new story, rather than waste.

This meant that time has come for many materials that I’ve collected since my childhood and couldn’t throw away to be part of life…

The moment I see the waste materials that I come across in one way or another in my daily life, which inspire me, I ask them, “How about setting sail for a new life? First you’ll find your place in an artistic composition, then you’ll be blended with layers of paint, you’ll be watched and changed many times in order for you to be in harmony with the basic elements of a painting such as color, shape, texture, and eventually you’ll take your place on an art lover’s wall as part of the work, what do you think?”  The materials used in all the paintings you see here seem to have accepted my offer…Then lucky me…

Besides all this, there’s also an aspect that I feel sorry for…

Every day we throw away many materials that haven’t completed their useful life.  As we all know, one of the biggest problems in the world today is sustainability.  We consume everything very quickly, we produce more garbage every day that the world can no longer handle. So what are we doing to prevent this? Surely, each of us has work to do on this matter. In this sense, even if it’s a small contribution, I “upcycle” the objects to be thrown away and include them in an artistic environment, thus I’m trying to prove how beautiful and useful they’re…

When I feel that I’ve achieved this, I proceed on my way with the happiness of fulfilling my duty…