Selma Gürbüz, 1960-2021

Born in Istanbul in 1960, Selma Gürbüz began her art studies at Exeter College of Art and Design. She received her fine arts degree in 1984 from the painting department of the Faculty of Fine Arts at Marmara University. In her paintings, Gürbüz reinterprets and problematizes archetypal figures established in cultural memory through a contemporary language. She posits a new perspective reflecting on the relationship of visual culture with the workings of memory and outwardly manifested symbols.

Her works synthesize Eastern and Western arts. Upon stencil-like figures painted in one continuous stroke and featuring decorative characteristics akin to embroidery, symbols attributed to both Eastern and Western cultures, silhouettes superimposed on colored backgrounds like pieces of decor, imaginary shadows uprooted from different strata of time and culture, plants referencing some uncertain nature, creatures upon whose existence and meaning we cannot reach a verdict, and stackings of schematized linear characters in various sizes creating layers of depth, she also adds mythical references. She redesigns symbols born out of behavioral patterns through generations, regardless of geography or culture. Selma Gürbüz strives to find modern equivalents to archetypes from dream interpretations, ancient myths, visual arts, literature, and cultural studies. They become hybrid scenes, the meaning of which we cannot entirely fathom but toward which we can develop a certain affinity the moment we confront them.

The figures in most works Selma Gürbüz groups under the headline “The Fairy and the Genie,” like “Self-Portrait” feature her face and mannerisms. In a way, the artist expresses through these works the mystical qualities she perceives in herself. Her sharpened and purified images not only beckon innumerable journeys through the visual traditions of various cultures but also invite us to ponder the many facets of the human psyche.