Yasemin Özcan's Wet Floor Explores Migration and Memory at Arter

Yasemin Özcan's solo exhibition, titled Wet Floor, is set to launch at the entrance floor gallery of Arter in Istanbul, with dates from 19 September 2024 to 6 April 2025. Curated by Eda Berkmen, this exhibition features a blend of existing artworks alongside new creations tailored to the venue. It explores themes of intergenerational transmission, migration, and self-identity, focusing on the connections among humanity, the earth, language, memory, autobiography, and fiction. Soil is portrayed both as a building material and a symbol of cultural exchange, emphasizing the transformation of clay and its relationship to language, identity, and connections. Drawing inspiration from Alevi family customs, Özcan reinterprets everyday objects and images to reflect on gratitude, mourning, legacy, and the cycles of nature. The exhibition’s title, Wet Floor, is inspired by a term used by real estate agents during home searches, referencing 'wet areas' like kitchens and bathrooms, which suggests a sense of instability. Through fictional narratives, the installation presents a reflective and humorous take on themes of lineage, memory, urbanization, and modernization, while embracing both fragility and hope.