ÖZLEM SULAK - 12 EYLÜL / SEPTEMBER 12

The work of Özlem Sulak (1979) embraces the personal and political in subtle and equal measure: all of her film works and installations articulate personal perspective and represent public discourse while asserting their elemental reciprocity. Almost thirty years ago, on September 12, 1980, a right-wing military coup d’état led by General Kenan Evren took state power in Turkey. This destroyed the entire opposition in Turkey and took away the basic liberties with its oppressive military constitution, but also led to years of silence. For12 Eylül, Sulak interviewed 12 people of different ages and social backgrounds on their personal experience and memories of the event. Each short video frames one personal account letting the supporters as well as the opponents of the putsch their space to express what happened in these days. Sulak concentrates on the intimacy of an individual experience of a singular belonging, which at large constitutes a fabric of history and its "grand narrative". (Bettina Steinbrügge)