Gazing at the Unseen
Creating, creativity, and what belongs to us in this structure, things we prefer keeping to ourselves… There are unspoken stories behind what the things we see tell us. Hüseyin Çağlayan constructs his statements on the basis of this point, along with privacy, art, sharing and maybe most importantly, creativity. The multidisciplinary artist gathers the experiences he gained from his exhibitions, installations and fashion shows under one roof – self-realization.
What are the areas your artist identity differs from your fashion designer personality?
Hüseyin Çağlayan: My designer personality doesn’t differ from my artist identity. Since I’ve always carried them out together, it’s been a parallel career right from the start. Just like my artworks, my fashion designs have been exhibited in museums and galleries from the very beginning. So, I became an interdisciplinary creator. In fact they are all a part of the same world. As for me, I don’t separate them, their tools are separate but the theme and approach are not so different.
I can use different tools to express my ideas. I have always sketched and painted, and I have included my drawings in my previous exhibitions. For example, the Louvre exhibition in Paris… But I have never had only paintings. I’ve always done paintings as well, but I haven’t done them on this scale in a long time. This is the first time I’m exhibiting only my paintings in an exhibition.
This is your first exhibition consisting only of illustrations; how was your process?
Hüseyin Çağlayan: We had exhibitions that contained clothing and installations together many times. In fact, our last show was at Shanghai Power Station Of Art. This happened two years ago, during the pandemic. Of course, it was a time when the impact of the epidemic was cleared up. That was my seventh personal exhibition where I displayed clothing along with my other works.
The idea for this exhibition emerged upon the question asked by Murat Pilevneli, my gallerist whom I’ve been working with for a long time, “Why don’t we hold an exhibition of your illustrations only?” It seemed exciting and original to me. All my other works were quite technical, like those displayed in Sabancı Museum last year. This exhibition was independent, I thought it would be a good experience.
“The Other Side” exhibition was about moments of the past. We see that the names of the artworks refer to specific moments and situations. Does this describe a journey of self-definition or does it seek to take the observer on such a journey?
Hüseyin Çağlayan: Definitely both. These are related to scenarios that, in my opinion, are quite unprecedented and remain in the background, I think. These are kind of background scenarios, scenarios that you wouldn’t normally be exposed to. Actually, I am there as a voyager, but I invite the audience to be voyagers as well. Also these are absurd scenarios, like Racquel Welch’s in Cyprus. So basically I create an approach and invite the observer to this path. I am only the provocateur of this invitation, but I invite others to observe in their own way. This is the case with most paintings, especially if they are abstract. You want people to interpret it in their own way. For me, it’s all about being behind the scenes. Watching the world from the outside and looking at the scenarios that seem absurd to me. I am always the voyeur, that’s why behind all the scenes there is something hidden about them. In a way, I collected the moments that I think are special to me. And I’m trying to create a kind of synapse of these moments. So this was a series of ideas for me. The common fabric of all these ideas is this total idea of a gaze. A gaze that contains seeing what is beyond the visible moment. Private moments, absurd moments…
It’s not exactly autobiographical, some of it is. For this, I will have to hold a much larger exhibition, not because I am special, but because of my experiences.
You come from a multicultural background, how would you describe the areas where this status is dominant in your work?
Hüseyin Çağlayan: I think my existence is connected to this, so everything I do is intertwined with it. I already come from a multicultural, even tricultural island. Then, at a young age, I went to another island, Great Britain. It is a lot more multicultural than Cyprus. So yes, I was made of this silk, I come from this kind of upbringing. And this takes you to a much more intuitive place.
”Watching the world from the outside and looking at the scenarios that seem absurd to me. I am always the voyeur, that’s why behind all the scenes there is something hidden about them.”
-Hüseyin Çağlayan
What does rebellion mean to you as a creator?
Hüseyin Çağlayan: I am a rebel, in a quiet way. It is a silent rebellion. As a creative person I deem defiance very important, and I think it is a part of my role to challenge social and sexual mainstreams. Who will challenge them, if not us? Only we can do it, the writers can do it, filmmakers can do it – the creators as a whole can do it. Our role should be to create new ways of seeing the world. We are creating new impulses and I would like to think that we are contributing to the whole world. Not just to the people interested in art.
Creativity creates ways of seeing. Not just artistically, but also culturally. I believe we are some kind of pathway. Because there is also a spiritual dimension to this. Being that you don’t always know where your creativity comes from. So our role should be to create an experience for people to bring color or a new dimension to their lives.
Do you think art is a movement?
Hüseyin Çağlayan: Yes, I see this as a movement, but also as a part of real life that should not be separated too much. This could be a trend… There have also been incredible trends so far. I think this is very valuable. But in general, I believe that artists should be valued and supported much more.
Can you describe the way to find the edges of your own limits?
Hüseyin Çağlayan: For me, the limit is where the work is finished. The spot where you finish the painting, in this case a painting, other times an installation, a film, or whatever… Maybe a garment. The moment when you decide to come to a stop, that’s the limit. You have to know where to stop; if you’re a visual person, the biggest trick is knowing what not to do. And to know when to stop, knowing when to start editing your own work. The minute you stop… This is the moment when the limit is set for me. It needs to be allowed to exist on its own. Then I allow the work to form its own perception of life.
Do you think a person can fully discover their unique self or does this require constant re-creation?
Hüseyin Çağlayan: You can discover your authentic personality but we are also social creatures. We are affected by dialogue, asking someone what they think of our work also affects us. Moreover, you may even like to challenge someone’s ideas and argue with them. It’s also great to get ideas or share opinions so you can learn from the dialogue as well. There’s only so much you can digest on your own. Certainly you can create a unique personality on your own, but you can only grow through dialogue. It is very healthy to open yourself up to talking and discussing with other people. In my case, since I’ve been in this business for 30 years, I learned a lot from my interviews. I find myself having to express abstract ideas to the person in front of me. This also clarifies some things for me. Although dialogues have a short lifespan, their effects can be quite powerful.
As an artist who shares his works, what importance do you attach to the concept of privacy in your life?
Hüseyin Çağlayan: I am quite private yet largely social. If your personal life is not private, you are in trouble. I don’t want such a life. I think this is what drives me away from social media. Sometimes I see this as “social pornography” because we are constantly exposing the private side of our lives. It is basically about how we use it, isn’t it? Like fire, you can either light up a room or burn it to the ground. I try to use social media creatively, but I’m actually more busy with producing my work. This takes up most of my energy.
What does achievement mean to you? Can you describe your emotional state when you feel like you’ve achieved something?
Hüseyin Çağlayan: I don’t know exactly what this means. Sometimes achieving is not a moment, it can happen in slow motion. “Achieving” is a far too precise and finite phrase for a situation that doesn’t necessarily be finite.
I associate myself with satisfaction more than achievement, and satisfaction comes when I feel like I’ve pushed my limits on a project. Thus, it means I’ve achieved something, I suppose. But I’ve never felt like an “achiever”. I’ve always felt that I gave my best, and I think I can at least inspire other people, just as I inspire myself first and foremost. For me, this is more about feelings I can be satisfied with, rather than asking “Oh, have I accomplished?”
”Our role should be to create an experience for people to bring color or a new dimension to their lives.”
-Hüseyin Çağlayan
Which situations do you describe as a “win”?
Hüseyin Çağlayan:For me, a win is a concept that spans a wider period of time. It’s not a single moment, it’s not like winning the lottery. An extended feeling, a process. For example, in order to say that last year was a good year, I need to talk about many experiences, not about a single event. Extending this feeling of fulfillment throughout a satisfactory period of time is the closest response I can give to this question.
Stability and balance are very important to me. The feeling of stability in work, private life, health and everything else. Even though there may be small hitches from time to time, stability should remain intact.
Central Saint Martins (CSM) has hosted many valuable artists, how do you carry on this legacy? What was the role of CSM in your journey to define yourself?
Hüseyin Çağlayan: A very important thing to emphasize on CSM is that CSM is actually an art school that offers fashion as a department. This is the greatest difference from many other institutions, because it allows you to interact with many other departments. It was exactly like that for me. I was deeply interacting with art departments. I had many friends from these departments, they also modeled in my graduation fashion show. In college, I would visit their studios, and they would drop by to visit mine. That was the most important thing.
It was in Soho back then, I can say it resembled Berlin a bit; a rough, extremely sexual, run-down place. It was literally an old art school. Old wooden floors, paint all over the walls, a complete mess, but a beautiful mess. We were all quite poor, so we needed to find many solutions to continue our work. For me, it is important that students stay poor; this way, they can create solutions. I don’t like the idea that students feel like customers. Since I also lecture in Berlin – I’ve been a professor in Berlin for about ten years – it is possible to see students acting like customers; in my time, we were definitely students, not customers. We had to find solutions constantly, which improved our creativity because we always had to think outside the box.
Interview by Tunga Yankı Tan
Photography by Zeynep Özkanca
From Based Istanbul N°43 – The Winners Club Issue. “For us, winning is deciding to embark on a journey. Ask yourself aloud: If this is a race, who else but me can make the rules? Welcome to the winners club!” Buy your copy now!