Gülsün Karamustafa

"[1] Using personal and historical narratives, Karamustafa explores socio-political issues in modern Turkey[2] and addresses themes including sexuality-gender,[3] exile-ethnicity,[4] and displacement-migration.

[5] "Hailed as one of Turkey’s most influential contemporary artists,"[6] her work reflects on the traumatic effects of nation building,[3] as it responds to the processes of modernization, political turbulence, and civil rights in a period that includes the military coups of 1960, 1971, and 1980.

[11] After her return to Istanbul in 1971, she was convicted of helping and abetting a political fugitive, and her passport was revoked for sixteen years,[12] making her unable to travel or emigrate until 1987.

[13] Between 1975–81 Karamustafa taught Basic Design at the State School of Applied Fine Arts where she also completed her PhD titled “The Interaction of Painting and Poster.”[11] She then left her position to pursue her artistic practice.

"[16]Karamustafa's works can be broadly categorised into three thematics: migration, identity, memory, and boundaries; her personal history and experiences; gender and femininity.

"[18] Until she received her passport in 1987, Karamustafa focused on the new hybrid visual culture caused by the massive waves of internal migration from rural Turkey to its major cities.

[5] During this period, she also co-directed Benim Sinemalarım[19] (“My Movie Theaters,” 1990) and she was the art director of Bir Yudum Sevgi [14](“A Sip of Love,” 1984), Kupa Kızı[20] (“The Heart Queen,” 1985), Asılacak Kadın[21] (“The Woman Who Must Be Hanged,” 1986) and Gecenin Öteki Yüzü[22] ("The Other Face of the Night," 1987).

[5] A key work from this period is Mystic Transport (1992), consisting of satin quilts in metal baskets, was first exhibited at the 3rd International Istanbul Biennial in 1992.