Ogulcan Kush, “The American Daydream,” August–September 2017
1515 Broadway, NYC
Art At Viacom is thrilled to present “The American Daydream,” a new installation from Artist-in-Residence Ogulcan Kush. Born in Istanbul, this is Kush’s first solo exhibition in the United States. A painter and sculptor, his work plays with geometric patterns and saturated color to create captivating motifs.
I was born in Istanbul, Turkey. Growing up, my favorite activity was to watch TV shows on Nickelodeon and other foreign cartoons; the other-worldliness of them mesmerized me. As I got older, I started getting into the broader American culture, and after my mother took me on a trip to New York in 2004, I was sure that this is where I wanted to live. In 2011, I moved to New York to study graphic design and then began working in the art world and ultimately at MoMA PS1. My work allowed me to be around art all the time, and when I was off, I was working on my own art in my studio. Everything seemed to be on track until I realized that my visa was about to end soon and I would need to leave the U.S. I had been living here for so long that the idea of leaving the life I had built here for myself seemed both absurd and out of the question. This period of instability and uncertainty became an opportunity for me to ground myself in my painting practice. I decided to be okay with leaving the U.S., and use whatever time I had left to react to the situation with my art. I took a mechanical approach towards my paintings. I would create a task for myself and I would work on my paintings to solve it. With my series "Limitations," I made up a set of rules: only 8x8 canvases, only three colors, and using only a ruler and a compass to create thirty-six designs. This allowed me to test my creative limits. I found this very comforting; I didn’t have any control over my immigration status, but I had control over my work. This project opened a new door for me. I began creating patterns from the repetition of simple geometric shapes. I was borrowing from Islamic art (dominated by geometric shapes and patterns), and delivering it in a bold style based on my interest in Western modern art (which is layered in its use of iconism, symbolism and storytelling). In my work, I intertwine my interest in both worlds to deliver the concept I have in mind for each piece through a visually bold and vibrant way. Jasper Johns’ "Flag" painting was the inspiration for my "Flag" painting in which I incorporate an Eastern twist, expressing my identity as a mix of the East and West. I also turned towards Dadaism and Anti-Art, studying what they mean in the contemporary world. My works "Circus Dome" and "Beehive" are grounded in my admiration for Magritte’s thought-provoking works and witty style. This entire body of work is born from my admiration for American pop culture, the motifs of Islamic art, and creating links between them in reaction to my current position as a “nowhere man.” Therefore, I decided to call the body of work "The American Daydream." —Ogulcan Kush