Anna Laudel presents acclaimed artist Belkıs Balpınar's solo exhibition titled "Micro-Macro" between April 26 and June 10, 2022. Balpınar is known to be the first name in Turkey to produce contemporary art works by using traditional rug weaving techniques. The exhibition features her brand-new works that bring together astronomy and the ‘art-kilim’ medium which she has pioneered.
Rug weaving in Anatolia has been a symbol of cultural richness and an important part of Turkish heritage. Balpınar combines this traditional craft with contemporary art and science through her invention named the ‘un-weave’ technique, that breaks the repetitive motifs of traditional rug patterns. This technique allows her to display the universe consisting of many elementary particles, stars and galaxies on the rug weave by using minimalistic drawings.
"Micro-Macro" features Balpınar’s micro and macro universes that move in circles and ellipses around themselves and each other as a reflection of the movements in space. She reflects in her works the movements in these universes that appear in a certain order and focuses on the essence of our being. Balpınar investigates the theoretical and practical aspects of perception and imperception both as a scholar and an artist. She admits that she and her work have been influenced by Albert Einstein's demonstration of the fourth dimension, which humankind is not yet capable of perceiving, on a space in terms of time and speed. She represents the space with large spiral forms and shows the movements of orbits that exist within the complex universe in their simplest form.
Her curiosity in science and cosmology manifests in her designs through her visual language. Looking from a relatively more universal point of view, with her designs she offers the audience new perspectives and different ways of perceiving the world.
Balpınar’s artworks feature in prominent private art collections worldwide including the former US Vice President Al Gore, fashion designer Miuccia Prada and author Ignazio Vok, as well as institutions such as the World Bank.
The exhibition ʺMicro-Macroʺ, featuring Belkıs Balpınar's new artworks can be seen at Anna Laudel until June 10, 2022.
Belkıs Balpınar
Born in 1941 in Eskişehir, Belkıs Balpınar is a textile specialist, a writer and researcher, and an artist. Graduated from the Textile Department of Istanbul Fine Arts Academy, the former curator at The Turkish and Islamic Museum in Istanbul has been creating textile artworks for the last 25 years, working collaboratively with the same master weavers. A pioneer in her field, she has overcome traditional rules regarding weaving techniques, iconography and format treatment. By doing so, she has projected an ancient skill into the realm of contemporary art. Her unique visual language combines age-old techniques with contemporary thought and science.
While most of her one-of-a-kind pieces are woven for exhibitions, Belkıs Balpınar also undertakes site-specific and special corporate art commissions. She was commissioned to create a piece for the entrance walls of the World Bank Building in Washington DC and the Aramco Center in Dhahran-Saudi Arabia and as well as 80 pieces for the Marmara-Manhattan Hotel in New York and some private commissioners. Some of her works have been displayed at the Modernist Exhibition in New York City and at the Basel Art Fair in Miami by Galleria Nilufar from Milan.
