ZEYNEP AKGÜL

Ankara-  Esma Sürücü decided to be a painter, not a teacher while studying the Art and Crafts Teacher Education at Bolu Abant İzzet Baysal University.  And for that reason, she started studying for a master's degree at Mimar Sinan Fine Art University as soon as she graduated from university. After completing her master's degree, she decided to study for a doctorate in Paris. But then she thought she wasn’t happy in Paris and decided to return to İstanbul. Sürücü states that the most dominant emotion in her paintings is sadness. We interview Esma Sürücü, a fan of Paula Rego, who focuses on cultural stereotypes, gender roles, violence against women, and sexual abuse through her paintings. 

Could you tell us a little bit about yourself? Who is Esma Sürücü?

I am the last child of a family of seven children in Adıyaman province. I lived in Adıyaman until I started university. I studied the Art and Crafts Teacher Education at Bolu Abant İzzet Baysal University. But I decided to be a painter, not a teacher while studying. For that reason, I started studying for a master’s degree at Mimar Sinan Fine Art University as soon as I graduated from university. After completing my master’s degree, I went to France to study for a doctorate. I took lessons to learn French in Paris. But I left my doctorate education uncompleted because I thought I wasn’t happy there. And I returned to İstanbul. Now, I have an art studio and I am working on my own projects.

“Painting was just a game for me”

How did you start painting?

I never had a dream to study art. The painting was just a game for me. It was to watch my father while drawing pictures. I started painting by chance. One of my friends went to make an application for a painting course and I went with her. The art studio fascinated me. After that day I always thought of it and I wanted to be in that magic world. This is how I decided to study painting.

“The most dominant feeling in my paintings are sadness”

Artemisia Gentileschi is known as the first feminist woman painter painting confident, strong women. Like Artemisia Gentileschi, you work on themes about women. What do you want to emphasize by painting women?

Artemisia Gentileschi is considered as one of the most successful seventeenth-century painters, initially working in the style of Caravaggio. Her paintings are often interpreted as revenge for the traumatic experience she survived. In my paintings, women don’t need to be strong, persistent, and confident. The women in my paintings are women who don't mind looking fragile. They don’t care about how they are considered. The most dominant emotion in my paintings is sadness. I cannot explain the reason why women are the subject of my paintings by being a woman. Even if I were a male painter, “women” could still be the subject of my paintings. 

“Our color and tone preferences are determined by our hometown and mood”

Do you have a special preference for colors or a special meaning you attribute to them?

I was born and raised in a place where the sun offers all the colors in the most impressive way. Maybe that's why I didn't hesitate to use many colors. I'm lost in bright blues and shades of green. With the effect of the gray and dark colors of Istanbul for a long time, my latest series of works called “Leda” are in shades of dark. Obviously, I think our color and tone preferences are determined by our hometown and mood. 

Which artists do you influence while doing your work?

The artists who influence me can change in the time I live in. Today, I enjoy analyzing Paula Rego’s fun works and creative compositions. Particularly, her works on the abortion law in Portugal are truly admirable.