If I would have a chance to redesign myself, what kind of being would I create? The rebirth is a process we actually experience in different phases of our life and each time we give a new form to ourselves.
Genesis ll is a series of ceramic sculptures serving as reflections of options to my new form of being. I formulate the new version of me as a creature who is a part of nature. Connected to others where the body forms are in intersection.
Water, earth, fire as principal elements of existence make clay the perfect material to start with. The process ideally connects me to the past and remembers my old being experiencing the same desires for reunion.
The sculptural work of Esra is based on the intercultural reading of history, she collects different elements of the previous periods to build new bodies aiming to reveal most collective humanitarian concerns. Intersectionality of the forms, periods, and geographical areas are the basis to shape the form. The body is perceived beyond the aesthetical concerns and becomes a territory of communication.
Venus, Artemis, Isis, Daphne, Nike; are some names of ancient Women Goddesses. During different periods, starting 35.00 years ago, in different geographical areas and by different civilizations, the perception and representation of women is associated with their motherhood, fertility, and healer qualities. Most have small heads, wide hips, and legs that taper to a point. Arms and feet are often absent, and the head is usually small and faceless. Various figurines exaggerate the abdomen, hips, breasts, thighs, or vulva, although many found examples do not reflect these typical characteristics. She is represented with large hips and big breasts to emphasize these feminine qualities. Helen Benigni in her book Emergence of the Goddess suggests they represent an archetype of a female Supreme Creator.
The image of Women Goddesses is represented also in association with animals to underline the ability of women to build connections and dialogue with nature in general and with animals. Climate changes and environmental concerns are motivations to reflect on the idea of ‘Anthropocene’, and the position of humans in relation to nature alienated and having a delusional superior destructive position. Recalling samples from history as the visual representation of Isis and Nike, forms that use the animal-human mixture, erasing the boundary between species; the interchangeability of similar structures of species reveals a stance that aims to transcend the boundary between species.
