The Bell is a light and sound installation that creates and visualizes its own resonance. The glass is hit at predetermined intervals by a metal rod, creating a sound whose volume is represented by the intensity of the light. The repeated hits on the glass make the spectator wonder whether the glass will at some point break. With its inherent tension -between the materials, glass and metal, light and sound, friction and vibration- and fragile harmony, the work creates a resonance that reminds us of the rare moments in life when we feel in sync with the world.
The light and sound wash over the space and call people to gather, slow down and observe their surroundings, creating an environment for people to become aware, question their perspective, enjoy togetherness or aloneness and reflect on the concept of resonance, as an antidote to contemporary accelerated society, as described by sociologist Hartmut Rosa.
Before he started his career as an installation artist, Bilal Yilmaz gained experience in designing conceptual interior spaces which enabled him to explore the interaction of people with their environment, objects and light, and added a socially engaged and collective element to his work. In 2013, he co-founded Olmazişler, a collective of two designer-makers, whose work was based on thinking through the existing possibilities, learning by experiences and creating conceptual spaces. Inspiration of The Bell lies on a memory from that period:
"Most of our conceptual projects were on bars around Taksim, an area which until recently was known as the locomotive of nightlife in Istanbul. Just before deciding to take a break from my design practice, there was a moment that made me question the impact of my work. I was at a rooftop bar in Taksim, on top of an old building of Armenian architecture style, overlooking the city and brainstorming on the design of the space. While looking down to understand the surrounding environment, I noticed a church hidden behind high walls and surrounded by bars. After that moment, my eyes started to catch all the hidden sacred buildings belonging to minorities in Taksim, and I realised how our nightlife culture is built on hiding their existence, how -even unknowingly- we structure our nightlife on the devastation of other cultures."
Craftsmanship In Ayvalık is a research based project realized in Summer 2020, during a one month residency at Gate 27. It is an attempt to map craftsmanship in Ayvalık, in order to uncover its cultural and economical potential, which can be achieved through creative collaborations between craftsmen, artists and designers. Mapping and activating such collaborations could become a tool towards financially and environmentally sustainable model.
The residency project resulted to:
- Map : A leaflet-map visualizing 36 crafts studios in the city and explaining the potential of collaboration between creatives and craftsmen
- Installation : A light & sound installation with objects collected from mapped studios, carrying memories of the craftsmen, traces of the city’s history and its disappearing crafts culture.
- Creative-Craft Platform : A long-term plan for further development of the creative-craftsman collaboration model.
The project is based on Bilal Yılmaz’s ongoing research on “Craftsmanship In Istanbul” and his creative collaborations with craftsmen that have been a big part of his practice.
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Crafted In Ayvalık : Text - Map
Ayvalık’ta Zanaatkarlık : Metin - Harita
Exhibitions:
Craftsmanship in Ayvalık, 2020
Research, Publication, Light & Sound Installation
Residency at Gate 27
In collaboration with curator Lydia Chatziiakovou
Custom made lights in collaboration with Craftsmen of Ayvalık
Low-tech wearable-light concept for re-activating crowd interaction at nightlife (or in urban space) in the post-Covid_19 world.
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“Fundamentals of human nature will not change. We are social animals!”*
When the dark side of the day starts, the visual world around us is defined by Light.
“Light makes matter visible, matter makes light discernable.” **
Wearable Lights can define our personal and collective -safe- space and create a dynamic situation of togetherness. Light can be the dominant visual element of our outfit, an extension of our body, an expansion of our border, and a tool for perceiving space and distance.
Not only does light create a mass-less & volume-less dynamic border, it also enables us to feel the joy of being a part of the visual scenography of the night.
It is a concept to redefine our interaction, to give equal emphasis on every person in the space, to empower them with the strong but minimal impression of light, and to re-activate collective experience of night.
(The wearable light concept is developed as a part of Unity - live audio visual / light installation performance)
Inspirations / References:
1-Protesters maintain social distancing at the 'Black Flag' protest in Tel Aviv, 📷:@tomerikoo
2-Social distancing in Singapore, @tasarimbienali, @tape_measures, 📷:@natgeeoh
Unity is a live audio visual / light installation performance series based on equally strong audio and visual elements, aiming to create a resonating, affective experience that references the roots and recent re-emergence of electronic music and club culture as agents for the formation of temporary communities; ultimately, to bring people closer through art and contribute to shifting their perception of the world around them and how they engage with it.
Unity is created around City Stage - a custom-made light installation/tool designed and produced as a craft-friendly product with a post-industrial design approach.
Unity-1
For Unity's first edition, Yılmaz collaborated with established electronic music producer from Thessaloniki/Greece, AND.ID. The two artists perform live side by side within the environment activated by light and music. The performance is built on several cycles of construction and deconstruction of sound and light, producing an unexpected variety of music and visual forms.
AND.ID's music can be heard as a showcase for the richness of electronic music, giving us upbeat, softer or epic moments throughout the 60 mins. performance; while Bilal Yılmaz’s light installation adds an autonomous narrative, a fluctuating choreography of light that moves in and out of sync to the music.
Overall, analogue and digital systems are combined in the production and delivery of both music and visuals, creating a pre- and post-digital universe, where the sensorial and the cognitive intuitively meet.
Thanks to its equally strong audio and visual parts, the entire experience can be appealing to a variety of audiences. And thanks to the versatility of the light installation, it can take different forms and shapes, and can be adapted to a variety of stages and locations (indoors and outdoors).
The “one night installation” series is an underground collective project on club/rave culture. The project aims to create fictional atmospheres through durational exposure to art by using electronic music and installation art as tools, resulting to unique collective experiences thanks to visual and auditory interventions on the texture of space.
Distorted Nature, Anahit Stage, Istanbul, 13 September 2019
“Artistic production begins with ceremonial objects destined to serve in a cult. One may assume that what mattered was their existence, not their being on view. The elk portrayed by the man of the Stone Age on the walls of his cave was an instrument of magic. He did expose it to his fellow men, but in the main it was meant for the spirits.” W. Benjamin - The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction
The Spirits and Distorted Nature are different episodes of the “one night installation” series. Inspired from Walter Benjamin’s words, they both explore the parallels that can be drawn between the unifying resonance experienced both during raves and religious rituals.
The Spirits / Distorted Nature promotion video (1)
The Spirits / Distorted Nature promotion video (2)
The Spirits, Mixer Gallery, Istanbul, 30 March 2018
The Spirits and Distorted Nature were produced by Mutual Collective, initiated by Bilal Yılmaz towards creating large-scale installations and interaction-oriented experiences. Both projects showcased emerging local DJs and invited young designers and artists to create the posters, teasers and after movies based on each night's concept. This somewhat open format functioned as a platform for a shared, collective ownership of the creative input.
poster: Can Ortak
poster: Can Ortak
Distorted Nature, Anahit Stage, Istanbul, 13 September 2019
“one night installation” series:
The Spirits, March 2018
@ Mixer Gallery, Istanbul
Distorted Nature, September 2019
@ Anahit Stage, 16th Istanbul Biennial Parallel Event, Istanbul
City Stage is a light installation-tool that activates (public) spaces and communities by transforming those spaces into stages for (participatory) artistic and performative interventions.
City Stage can be installed in countless variations; each light beam can be controlled individually through a combination of analogue and digital systems, giving the possibility to create a great variety of visual light forms.
It was produced together with craftsmen in Istanbul and Thessaloniki. So far, city stage has been used to explore its possibilities in various workshops and events as a tool for pushing the boundaries of performance and audience participation.
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“Introduction to Freevolous City Stage”, workshop with theatre director Giannis Paraskevopoulos, Project LABattoir, Thessaloniki, May 2019
“Symposium III”, participatory performance by theatre director Thanasis Kritsakis, Project LABattoir, Roman Forum, Thessaloniki, June 2019
“Post-Europe: a work-in-progress”, installation by Elli Chrysidou, live interaction by Giorgos Klountzos-Chrysidis, Project LABattoir in partnership with Goethe-Institut - Project Freiraum, Thessaloniki, October 2019
Political demonstration, performance, Thessaloniki, June 2019
“Sandmen: dreaming in/of Europe”, participatory performance by actor-director Thomas Velissaris, Project LABattoir in partnership with Goethe-Institut - Project Freiraum, Thessaloniki, October 2019
AND.ID x Bilal Yılmaz, live audiovisual performance, Project LABattoir in partnership with Goethe-Institut - Project Freiraum, Thessaloniki, October 2019
The City Stage was produced together with craftsmen from Thessaloniki and Istanbul: 74% crafted production & 26% industrial production. (Calculations based on the cost of production)
City Stage: design manifesto, production map, sketches
City Stage: project generation, workshops, design concept
The works in the "Memories of Objects" series refer to the spatial existence and multiple connotations of found objects in their initial state as raw material, before they take a new form. This is an attempt to say something about the story and identity of the objects, found while wandering, researching and producing in the city.
Unnamed-1 Blacksmith's yearly waste.
Unnamed-2 The Kuzguncuk Garden, beginning of the end.
Unnamed-3 Great New Han, on the way to becoming wood.
Unnamed-4 Looking at the 3. Bridge’s legs
Unnamed-5 Burgaz Island Fire - 2003, the rest.
Installation from ‘Made in Türkiye’ exhibition - April ’17
‘Picnic Inventions’ is a series of mobile inventions made for preparing food and bringing people together. ‘Picnic inventions’ address the processing and consumption of food that, in addition to satisfying the basic human need, has always been connecting and uniting people. Therefore, the invention for baking chapati and the invention for preparing the dough are complemented by the invention for a serving food and enjoying with friends.
The inventions are entirely made of recycled materials (waste barrels, bicycle parts and wooden pallets). Objects were found in the waste management company of Ljubljana.
Prototypes of ‘Picnic inventions’ are primarily intended for use on the temporary use space called ‘Teren’ in Ljubljana. Inventions are designed so that you can easily take them to different locations around the city, where they encourage or complement public events.
In ancient cultures, the butterfly often symbolises the soul, the incorporeal essence of a living being."The Butterfly" is a light installation that brings people together under its wings, carrying the soul of its surroundings. Referencing the phenomenon of positive-phototaxis -the locomotory movement that occurs when organisms like moths, insects and butterflies are attracted to move towards the stimulus of light- the "Butterfly" creates pulsing light waves on its wings, attracting people to meet under them.
The "Butterfly" can be seen as both the transmitter and the receiver of the message it carries. It is the light that attracts the soul and the soul itself. Moving towards the light becomes one and the same with the flickering light that stimulates this movement. The installation is thus a metaphor for what we are and what we’re striving towards; our current and future self, which to a large extent is the result of our interaction with others. As the "Butterfly" attracts people under its wings, it creates a safe space for interaction and exchange. It symbolises the harmonious meeting of the individual and the community. It calls for a congregation of souls who meet under the light to transform into their better selves.
exhibitions:
Colors
Svetlobna Gverila - 12th Light & Art Festival ‘18
@ Congress Square, Ljublijana, Slovenia
The New New
3rd Artecitya Art | Science | Technology Festival ‘18
Fireflies is a light & sound installation emerging from the research on multicultural identity of Istanbul in media.
The light units represent minorities who have lived in Istanbul. The sound design is composed from the music of various cultures who have existed in the streets of Istanbul. The influence of lights and flow of sound in the atmosphere creates an illusion of time and space with the focus on transience of media.
http://istanbulkulturleri.org
Crafted In Istanbul - Produced with the help of :
Turret Lathe Master - Nedim Usta
Lathe Master - Cemal Usta
Polishing Master - Bayram Usta
Brass Pieces - Taylan
Exhibitions:
Plural Istanbul Media February’18
An archive exhibition on the research about multicultural identity of Istanbul in media.
"Home is where we 'grow roots', it is a place of intimate and collective memory, as well as a reference point of an individual and the community" *
In 2018 I was invited by International Centre for Graphic Arts - Ljubljana, Slovenia, as the first international residency artist of Švicarija Centre, to do a research on the identity of the building. Throughout the years, Švicarija acquired different identities, while its use changed. I focused on researching the hidden aspects of its history, in particular the collective coexistence of its users, and as a result I produced a light installation to reveal those hidden aspects.
Installation Text:
Though set up as one of Ljubljana’s high-end places, it didn’t take long for the Swiss House to took on a life on its own. Artists, bohemians, vagabonds, Russian immigrants, “les miserable’s”, social tenants found themselves together in the Swiss House, in the little village, hidden in the woods, overlooking the city. In this remarkable period of the Swiss House, often overlooked as dirty or poor, all the various residents with their own backgrounds and stories were making friendships, solving conflicts, taking care of the House and its surroundings. Living on the edge of the forest, in harsh conditions, the people of the Swiss House were relying on each other. They have made the house their home and the House made them a community.
research and interviews
Arne Zupančič
Special thanks to Ivanka Jerman, Vojko Anzeljc, Bejza Bejtić Topalović, Ahmo and Denis Hašić, Petra Meterc, Alija Đogić and Nina Savič.
*Identities of a house: Švicarija and its inhabitants through time, Andrej Boštjančič.
Crafted In Istanbul - Produced with the help of :
Turret Lathe Master - Nedim Usta
Lathe (metal) Master - Cemal Usta
Lathe (wood) Master - Muammer Usta
Brass Pieces - Taylan
Exhibitions:
'Svicarija: Community, Art and Nature' - February ’18
@ Švicarija Creative Center, Ljubljana, Slovenia“ | MGLC_ Residence Artist
Aura is a lighting design project produced with Craftsmen of Istanbul. It was exhibited at ÖkoRausch Sustainable Design Festival '17 at MAKK(Museum of Applied Arts) in Cologne-Germany.
Crafted In Istanbul - Produced with the help of :
Inlaying Master - Aram & Thomas Usta
Lathe Master - Şevket Usta
Brass Casting - Nihat Usta
Pressing Master - Yüksel Usta
Polishing Master - Yücel Usta
Exhibitions:
ÖkoRAUSCH Design Festival
MAKK (Museum of Applied Arts) , Cologne-Germany, May 2017
Salon is a stage design project in Modri Kot (Blue Corner) at Autonomous Factory Rog – alternative community space in Ljubljana.
In this project, I mainly try to question: How the design of a space can bring people together under a new purpose to contribute the idea of creating a collective community and an informal economy.
Poster design for the opening of the stage by Lara Mastnak.
Poster design for the opening of the stage by Urška Savič.
Poster design for the opening of the stage by Te Sera.
Most of the design is made from recycled wardrobes and found materials.
Improvisation event in ‘salon’ at Transforma Festival `16
Improvisation event in ‘salon’ at Transforma Festival `16
Improvisation event in ‘salon’ at Transforma Festival `16
Improvisation event in ‘salon’ at Transforma Festival `16
‘Dirty Box’ is a shadow machine emerging from my research “Craftsmanship In Istanbul”. Through the images and shadows, it tells the story of craftsmen who joined its production and the chaotic streets of Istanbul.
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video by Bora Yediel
‘Dirty Box’
I came to Istanbul in 2004 to study and still I am living here.
Istanbul carries different images to different minds. While walking in the city, I let my body find its own path. By coincidences, bigger streets carry me to the smaller alleys, shadowy rooms, underground studios.
Through conversations, untold stories are unfolded and they shape the spaces.
I discover that my body follows the traces of dirt; where work, material and patience meet.
Dirt is the visual evidence of labor that comes through the hands.
My path passes from a variety of craftsmen studios. I watch how the limits of the material are being forced and shaped by the know-how of the masters. I witness how the tools act like a part of the craftsmen’s body with the knowledge coming from the experiences of the past generations.
Hand labor is losing its social and economic value day by day.
Craftsmanship in Istanbul is passing away with all the knowledge gained during generations.
Accelerating industrialization, urban transformation and gentrification not only kill the crafts culture with its entire know-how; but also fade out their existence and importance in the history.
The paths I have been following in Istanbul in the recent years became my academical research. And making the dying traditional crafts visible by documentation, integrating and maintaining them in the existing system turned out to be an ambition.
‘dirty box’ is a shadow machine emerging from my research about craftsmanship in Istanbul.
Through the images and shadows, ‘dirty box’ brings the life of craftsmen who joined its production and the chaotic streets of Istanbul into life.
“Physical and social barriers are a result of speculative urban development, where big capital is the big winner. The victims are often students, artists and other low-income groups. At the Galata Greek Primary School, Bilal Yılmaz’s mechanical projection maps the disappearance of traditional crafts workshops in central Istanbul.” Elmgreen & Dragset *
*A Good Neighbour, Introduction, 15th Istanbul Biennial - Exhibition Book, ‘17
Crafted In Istanbul - Produced with the help of :
Carpenter - Fedai Usta
Lathe (wood) Master - Aydın Usta
Lathe (metal) Master - Bekir Usta
Designer-Maker - Çağlayan Usta
Exhibitions:
Past, in Each of its Moments, be Citable - June `16
An exhibition project on Walter Benjamin’s Concept of History in the City of Istanbul
CraftedInIstanbul is a collective action project on my research, ‘Craftsmanship In Istanbul’. The project aims making craftsmen’s underground studios visible with an interactive online map and activating collaboration possibilities between craftsmen and creative industry.
Olmazişler is a collective of two designer-makers, who try to transform existent, think through the present possibilities and learn by experience. While designing objects and interior spaces, we mostly work with natural and waste materials.
http://olmazisler.tumblr.com
Istanbul Design Biennial, 2014
(http://2tb.iksv.org/proje.asp?id=15)
In the production process of many designs, we worked with various craftsmen studios in Istanbul. That enabled me to observe and experience the possibilities and potentials of collaboration between designers and craftsmen.
Olmazişler is co-founded by Bilal Yılmaz and A.Serkan Aka.
It consists of a programable mechanical eye module, micro controller, speakers and natural materials found in the area. The installation was designed as the entrance installation of Floating Castle - Art & Music Festival (Slovenia) through the scenography of the festival, which was created as the result of a participatory workshop with the contribution of international artists and experts.
The Spider installation idea is based on creating interactive forms that bring joy of experience. The forms are built with materials found in the specific area and custom-made programable light and motion tools are installed into the forms to animate them.
Floating Castle - Art & Music Festival ‘16 - Slovenia
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Eye motion module
The form of Spider was build from woods found at the festival area.
The installation was made with the help of :
puppeteer: Miha Arh (slovenia)
sound designer: Tomáš Háček (czech republic)
bilal yılmaz @bilalyilmaz44 - Tumblr Blog | Tumgag
