Since 1985, the artist considers the “space
and time” relationship with an intellectual concern, while
developing multi-vision practices, shows an analytical
approach. H.Avni Öztopçu is not only dealing with the
belongingness of object to the space, at the same time
dealing with the belongingness of object to the time. In
the inquisition of object in relationship of object and
space; the aim of the artist is not only authenticating a
saved moment against the time slipping through our hands,
and not capturing and eternalizing a moment existing with
the time.
The artist enables us to read the opposite
notions in a circular flow like emptiness and fullness,
vertical and horizontal; the being of opposites inside the
dialectic of object and space, which are the complementary
parts of a whole in the language of the plastic world. In
his paintings, H.Avni Öztopçu correlates the space notion
with the gaps between the objects and crosscut planes or
plane in series, and illusion of three dimensions by using
the perspective. He builds a world which is composed of
artistic instruments placed on an art-specific surface
with a fiction which is composed by him and determines the
rules of space. Although, the references of all elements
in the composition are coming from the outer world, they
can be read as the reflection of the artist’s inner world.
In the paintings of H. Avni Öztopçu, no
object is accidentally located in the space. Object
demonstrates its belongingness in time as an ongoing
element of mobility, and artist questions the
belongingness of object to the time and space with a
sophisticated perspective. Since 1985, this perspective
constitutes its own “Individuals” in every attitude of
each stage, also reckons with the past and with the
metamorphosis inside, and give a start to his odyssey in
sheltered areas. In this odyssey, we see the individuals
of each stage which are sourced from the mentality and
perception perspective of the artist. The artist who
leans to new searches in his each stage, allows us to
watch the circulation of the visible and audible in the
“time and space” perception which are the baselines of his
paintings, and also allows us to see the whole scenery;
the problematique which has been discussed for 30 years,
and the fictional conversions in his own stages.
H.Avni Öztopçu’s discussion of space-time
relationship in his paintings goes beyond a physical state
and with the synergy of emotions and thoughts confronts as
the reflections of the envisioned imaginary process.
Fiction progressed through the thoughts of the artist,
while transmitted to the canvas, each element generates
its own datas, and these datas concretize as form’s and
motion’s optical expressions. The motion of all the used
elements and the structure of the surface which shows
resistance against it draw the attention with the planes
and with the light and shadow. In addition to this,
verticals, horizontals, and each piece placed on the
painting are producing their own meanings and, while
plastic values gathering in countless ways in the space of
the painting surface, plane variations enriches our time
and space perception. Spaces interrupted by planes and
consisted corridors enable us to build a new relationship
between the object and time. On the other hand, while
physical space transforming to the work of art itself, and
by incorporating the time perception in to the work
creates a sense of fourth dimension. Therefore; the planes
in Avni Öztopçu’s works, serves for a very important
interrogation. The gap between the objects is not only
areas plotting the objects; at the same time are parts of
the space. Also, the gap between the objects as a design
element is a figure and as well as a part of space. The
plans which are related with each others in the space, at
one side are creating a surface of a plane, on the other
side reducing the surface of a plane by dividing. These
vertical, horizontal or formless surfaces interrupt the
space while disrupting the integrity of other surfaces.
When we look at the visual world, either an object is in
front of an object or behind another object. Between the
adjacent and overlapped planes, there are transition
steps, and like geometric forms planes seem overlapped by
the effect of some factors. The paintings of H.Avni
Öztopçu draw an attention with the fictions composed of
sequences.
The paintings of the artist shouldn’t only
be evaluated as an examination of plastic layout which
creates the work of art, at the same time should be
evaluated conceptually with space and time coherence.
Ephemerality, conversion and continuity of time, enhance
the conceptual importance of dialectic in fiction. And
according to Paul Virilio, in new global information
technologies, the most outstanding thing isn’t space, it
is time. In the new post-modern period, the speed of time
intensifies our perception of reality, and also
accelerates it and this situation destroys the naturality
of earthly time and space, and provokes to perceive the
reality as time and space informality. But, the paintings
of H. Avni Öztopçu points out the integrity of serenity
and simplicity expressions instead of speed and
fragmentation. The artist considers not only the
superficial image in his paintings, also considers the
balance of the oppositions originated by the elements.
When this opposition examined, it can be seen on each
vertical and horizontal section on the painting plane and
with effecting the surface, it deforms its two dimensioned
nature, and by creating its own domain, mediates a
dialectic motion. Artist balances each element’s existence
with a resistance against an opposite power. In this
resistance, we are observing how opposite powers
strengthen or weaken each other. At the same time,
oppositions create a tension that ensures dynamism. This
dynamism between the oppositions can be seen sometimes
with the verticals and horizontals, sometimes with the
light and shadow contrariness, and sometimes at the
contrast of warm and cold colours. In this exhibition, H.
Avni Öztopçu scents out a simple and minimalist
understanding by focusing on the opposition of vertical
and horizontal planes, light and dark colours instead of
the opposition of colours. When we look at his
compositions, he enables us to compare these dynamics with
each others, and analyse them one by one, and after that
enables us to integrate all these parts.
Integrity has a very important position in
the paintings of H.Avni Öztopçu, and also enables us to
develop a perception which helps us to organise
correlating the visual elements in sensual aspect
integrally, as already organised in mental aspect. On the
surface which is limited with two dimensions, spatial
distributions of the visual elements compose a perceptual
effect. The artist, with the effect of perception created
on the ground of conscious, provokes the sensitivity level
of the audience and opens the doors of sensual perception.
In our analysis, in some part of decomposition enables us
to consider exterior impressions through shape, and in
another part enables us to consider inner reactions
through senses.
In Istanbul Mine Art Gallery, Niţantaţý
venue, under the title of “Shelters
and Individuals”, H.
Avni Öztopçu exhibits his paintings and enables us to see
how he benefits from the opportunities of the plastic
arts, and how he deals with the main elements of art while
questioning the fundamental problematic of “time and
space” in his paintings. Since 1985, it is possible to
witness a historical cycle of artist’s approach to these
elements.
Each studied artistic production, shaped
and rendered according to the period they are created in.
H. Avni Öztopçu who renders the time-space problematic
with the opportunities of plastic language, in his
“shelters and individuals” exhibition is heading towards
to the future while continuing his traces inside the
corridors of the periods themselves, and transforming and
altering in his inner dynamics.
Area Experiments and Individuals
Pýnar Sumer Biber;
ÇAĐDAŢ
1985" sayý:28
When we look at the process of Avni Oztopcu’s paintings, we
can see how same attitude progresses over its cumulative
segments and from time to time how they withdraw the
previous experiments to experimental areas once again.
Even their names are different; we can see the individuals
which have transformed on their own with the names “Tek Dg”
and “Tek Bt” (1995). Before the Individuals, there were
paintings of him which belong to the year 1985 and those
were the preliminary works for the paintings in this
exhibition. While these works looking for peace zones, they
also strongly desire to reach the unique person and also
touching their domain through the literal and absolute
figures.
After the “Phases” exhibition, “Shelters and
Individuals” was the last exhibition that Oztopcu has
opened in 2014. In both of these exhibitions, the artist
enables us to see the whole integrity of the fictional
conversions consisted during his stages and
the problematique which has been discussed for 30 years. We
will meet with some of these new experiments in the
exhibition of “Area Experiments and Individuals”.
In these experiments, we can see that the movement improves
with the emphasis of the light and dark tones and with all
the states of colours in the infinity of darkness. We face
with the relations supporting balance which are continuously
in a struggle, while the gravity is building up. We will see
both contradiction and emphasis in the same environment.
We can see the attitude related to the contradiction of
darkness and colour in Oztopcu’s report in 1986. “…In
my paintings the figures which express an artificial
appearance are lapsed in to colours and geometric or free
shapes, sometimes give the feeling of a rough ornament and
these are all in an infinite looking location, that can’t be
determined by anything. This location is the space where the
stars are travelling, and it is outside of our usual
experiments. So it seems like an imaginary place for us.”
(1)
In the report of 1989, for the period in which the colour
contradiction empowered: “…geometric ornaments replaced
with free shapes in the later times of 1986. And in the
beginning of 1987, these free shapes adopt their role with
their active sides in this combination. They are no longer
in a dark place where the stars are travelling, but they are
still located in an imaginary atmosphere. New ornaments
undertake the enthusiasm in the painting while carrying
three elements of the colour with their vibrant side”
(2)
In both states of the contradiction, a strong desire exists
for using the movement in edges. This brings up the linear
structure. “Being in search of clarity, integrity
and accuracy with the expansion of contradiction through the
edges, made me approach to a linear structure. And also form
occupation has cultivated the linear structure as
well.
My method of seeing the form, transformed in to the duty of
certainty. This doesn’t mean form needs to be certain
all by itself, this just means each form has a strong
tendency to manifest itself.
I hardly worked in order to make the elements seem with
clarity and accuracy. Emphasis is over the boundaries of the
object and linear approach separates the objects from each
other. My target is comprehending the objects as permanent
and tangible realities. Each form has been compelled in
order to seem in the most typical way for themselves. Single
(found by oneself) ornaments are improved in case of
meaningful contradictions.
In my paintings while each part is tightly bounded to the
whole, at the same time tries to be independent. This is not
randomness; singles are subjected to the whole, but never
give up existing on their own. This forces the audience to
see additively, which is an occupation for combination of
the independent parts.
…Certainty in my paintings remains in the visibility of
forms. When it is watched entirely, there is an
uncertainty in the meaning. In this case, this is not
the complication of a puzzle; on the contrary it is just an
occupation in order to conserve an uncertain part eternally.
The duty of the uncertainty is dedicated to the meaning
of the combination.
In the combination of all, the meaning is not related with
anything. The certainty in the forms obtained with the
expansion of contradiction. Forms can be in absolute
intellectuality or can exist in nature devoid of holism and
the elements isolated from nature are in the way of
intellectual intangible existence. Both of these states can
connect with each other intellectually."
(2)
The certainty – uncertainty stages still continue in
the paintings of H. Avni Oztopcu. This is the state of the
individual or individuals and their feeling areas. While
individuals remain on their own, at the same time it can be
seen that they try to make a distant collaboration with the
other individuals. They also aim touching a unique person
further and it is perceivable that there is a desire for a
journey to reach universal time through its own area. (3)
1 - Oztopcu, H.Avni: Light-Space-Object, Istanbul 1986,
Mimar Sinan University Social Sciences Institute, Art
Painting Department Masters Report.
2 - Oztopcu, H.Avni: Fictional Space, Istanbul 1989, Mimar
Sinan University Social Sciences Institute, Art Painting
Department Proficiency in Art report.
3 - Sumer Biber, Pinar: 2015-2016 H. Avni Öztopçu interview
notes at the studio.
Dynamic Visuals of Dualities
Ođuz Alp Dedeođlu
March 2011
With its roster of prominent
representatives of abstract painting in Turkey, Mine Art
Gallery enables us to witness the development of abstract
art in the country. Today, the gallery offers contemporary
interpretations that move from “environment” to “universe”
and operates with a presence spanning Asia and Europe.
Recently, it has showcased Avni Öztopçu’s abstractions,
which present and explore contrasts that are far from
unfamiliar to us. The exhibition also features the
artist’s latest works from 2010. Since 1985, Öztopçu has
embarked on a journey shaped by the depth of meaning he
derives from his lived experiences. This depth is conveyed
to the viewer through various modes of expression,
transforming meaning into form and form back into meaning.
I believe the artist is deeply concerned with inviting the
viewer into the abstract whole, using contrasts to
reference meaning. We should reflect on how permeable
these abstractions are to the viewer, based on what we
have experienced.
In nature—or in places where we cannot
quite call it nature—we imagine spaces where we think we
can live or realize our thoughts by freeing ourselves from
the limits of our limited imagination. Sometimes, we live
through decades when, rather than the depth of boundaries,
we dwell on forms—such as a nest made of two twigs. The
noise of the crowd can sometimes sound as beautiful as the
cannon fire in Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture; other times,
it displaces us and stirs a longing for home. Life, sound,
imagination, crowd, or solitude—all of these are realities
we all witness in this world, whether we consider their
content or structure. These phenomena present in today’s
world also form part of our era’s nature. When we consider
these phenomena through the genuine meaning of nature, we
encounter the exalted objects of the advertising and
industrial age, which symbolize not motion but bondage and
captivity. So, how can we capture movement or problematic
stimulation from the same phenomena? The answer is simple:
when we feel we have reached a state of stillness and a
spirit capable of overcoming things... Thus, we gain
enough time to reflect deeply on the rapidly passing
images before us. As we gain time, we delve into details.
Once the details compel us to see the whole differently,
we strive to see beyond. Just as insufficiency has no end,
emotions triggered by motivation set into motion. We can
perceive dualities such as the speed and slowness of life,
noise and harmony of sound, attraction and repulsion of
crowds, and the difficulty and ease of solitude as a form
of movement. This is because these and similar phenomena
cause the questioning subject to collide between the poles
of dualities. Dualities then become phenomena—objects—and
are presented in completely different ways. They can be
copies of nature as advertisements or industrial products.
Or they may exist in a spiritual realm within an utterly
unreal space of art, where they find the fullest possible
expression. While the advertising product lives the
stillness of captivity, on the other hand, the artist’s
untouched nature perpetuates movement. Both are
undoubtedly art today. However, I believe the latter—the
image of spiritual exuberance and its ability to provide
meaning and resolution—should resonate more warmly with
contemporary viewers.
Painter H. Avni Öztopçu’s works focus
on the impact of cosmic events on the subject. Within this
theme lies a concern to reflect contrasts nourished by
object abstractions into form and to express, in various
ways yet without detaching from the core theme, a
spiritual representation of what is achievable.
Structurally, we can regard the frame
not simply as the artist’s clichéd window but as a
collision zone of dualities—contrasts. For example, in his
2010 painting “Dayanak” (Support), the monumental object
placed vertically at the center and distant from the
frame’s edges is overlapped by approaching but non-existent
uncertainties in the immediate background. This creates a
broad interval between the whole and the frame. Filling
this space with black—rather than color—and using a single
tone transforms the whole’s gravitational field into
unlimited motion within the frame. The field of movement
is left uninterpreted, inviting the viewer into the
painting. Hence, the uncertainties behind the clearly
presented object at the front are supported by color and
surface forms, turning contrast into motion within an
empty, uninterpreted space.
In another abstraction from the same
exhibition, “Yüzer Korunak” (Floating Shelter, 2010), we
again encounter a movement behind a centrally placed
object that seems determined to extend beyond the frame.
The gravitational field of dualities is expanded and
relaxed, replaced by the distinctness of the object and
the indeterminacy of space, combining to evoke a sense of
relaxation—perhaps impossible in real life—offered by the
moment. A key detail in these two examples—as well as in
other paintings where different approaches are tried—is
the presence of black-and-white or light-dark shading in
both the monumental object at the forefront and the
ambiguous void that conveys the meaning behind it. These
tonalities produce certain ambiguities, creating a
perspective effect that directs attention to the center
and mitigates the eye-fatiguing tendency of strong
contrasts. When we combine the dominance of contrasts with
the calmness and sense of peace mentioned earlier and turn
inward as viewers, I find myself asking: While contrasts
collide in our minds, how do we reach the momentary peace
that develops as a result? Like everything else, we cannot
approach this by abstracting ourselves from events. We
must also abstract ourselves, objectify ourselves, and
ultimately include ourselves in the field of dualities.
Then, “ourselves,” containing all contrasts, contrasts of
black and white, noise and harmony, crowd and solitude,
can transform into form. But how do we realize that we
have transformed into form and become meaningful?
Awareness of our existence happens the moment we see the
equivalent contrast of our form. The other is a meaning
for me; for the other, I am a meaning. I, who gain form
through my experiences, deepen and gain meaning with the
existence of the other. What I call momentary peace is an
expression of this awareness.
Kant discusses the “teleology of nature”
in Critique of
Judgment. According to him, the laws nature gives us
are laws formed by our deep reflection upon it. Nature,
with its complexity, remains nature and is not a lawgiver.
Nature is not an end, but its end-giving structure guides
us toward it. Therefore, a person who communicates with
nature through deep thought finds themselves within a
responsibility. This philosophy also manifested in
Romanticism, Nietzschean approaches, and later in 20th-century
artists’ works. By this explanation, I do not claim that
Mr. Avni’s paintings express ego or a concern about a
particular class. It can be observed that painter Avni
Öztopçu has consistently advanced his abstractions since
1985. Even though he creates these abstractions through
various constructions, the main message of his paintings
is the process of conveying this judgment to the viewer.
These judgments arise from mutually causal objects in
abstractions and continue until the viewer is led into
interpretation in front of the painting, involving them in
the spiritual movement of depth and dualities.
Ultimately, influenced by classical
philosophy and contemporary life, Avni Öztopçu transforms
purposeless experiences into purpose through contrasts,
ambiguities, contrast, and spatial constructions. The aim
is to spark a stimulus in the viewer. I believe these
should be perceived not as psychological connections of
abstractions but as powerful alerts reminding
purposelessness in our chaotic age, regardless of space—or
geography, as it may also be understood. Humanity
undoubtedly needs the domain of these alerts. As I
mentioned at the beginning of my writing, if we can see
insufficiency in ourselves or any phenomenon, even just
taking a glance at the consistent internal natures or
conscious maps aiming for a solution, even momentarily, is
enough. This time, you may witness that our imagination is
not far removed from phenomena but can rather approach
them deeply. One of the representations of the matter at
hand is not far away; it is at Mine Art Gallery’s Asia
location until March 31, 2011.
References:
Kant, Immanuel;
Critique of Judgment,
trans. Aziz Yardýmlý, Ýdea, Istanbul, 2006
Öztopçu, H. Avni, “Fictional Space,”
http://www.avnioztopcu.com (1989)
MOMENTS OF CONTRAST
by Ođuz Alp Dedeođlu – Contemporary 1985, Nov–Dec
2011, Issue: 2
This critical text was
written after the exhibition held in 2011. It examines
Avni Öztopçu’s visual language through the lens of
monochrome expression and spatial dynamics.
In the solo exhibition of H. Avni
Öztopçu held in March 2011, we witnessed works in which
the dominance of black pushed itself assertively to the
forefront. These works were composed around an intense
questioning of the power of the “singular” object. The
exhibition showcased compositions where crowdedness, the
black-and-white contrast, and the tension of perceptual
clarity all contributed to a conceptual narrative. We
observed how the black-and-white tonalities functioned as
channels of emphasis. Drawing upon the notions of
“fictional space,” I interpreted these works as
articulations shaped through instinct, choice, and
consequence. However, when it comes to the artist's
November 2011 exhibition, we must also consider how the
works reveal faculties that emerge through processes of
formation and development—and how, through this, they
evoke a temporality that is inward-facing.
I.
It is not difficult to sense that time
participates in a definition that can be interpreted from
the movements of the cosmos down to the smallest incident.
Yet one of the most compelling ways to render this
definition visible and to attempt its interpretation may
be simply to perceive time as it is—thus, to let it be.
This isolation may suggest that in making time visible,
everything within that moment becomes isolated as well—purified
and stripped of all external influences. What we are
presented with, then, is a pathway of meaning that is
contemplative, extending from a sublime definition of time
to the depths of everyday human life. The contemporary
dimension of this, however, lies in the fact that time,
fragmented into parts, becomes fixed with all its raw
presence and unfiltered reality. Each fragment is anchored
to itself. And because there is no external force
regulating or governing it, it is neither wholly absent
nor fully present. It may indefinitely declare itself—or
vanish altogether.
In all of the artist's works from his
1985 pieces to those of 2011, we can discern a central
object that pushes itself to the forefront formally. This
suggests a persistent thematic presence throughout the
paintings. On one level, this theme may be perceived as
the transformation of the conceptual dimension of
portraiture—manifested through central objects and the
abstractions behind them—into a fictionally constructed
spatial language. These central objects, standing alone at
the heart of the pictorial plane, confront a spatial
fiction that may even negate their own positionality.
Within this fiction, space and object become each other’s
signifiers, while also serving as dual agents of tension,
allowing for thematic multiplicity.
II.
In the works “Floral Center Crz.” and
“Floral Center Blk.” from 1996, created on white grounds,
we witness how formal dissonances are dissolved within a
pure field. The use of varied colors supports the
integration of this sharp tension into white. We can sense
how white—representing neither the foreground nor the
background—imparts a peaceful atmosphere, mediating the
tensions and movements that occur within and upon it. What
occurs in the void filled by color is, inevitably, a
reflection of experience. Through color, the clarity of
objects becomes apparent; through objects, the clarity of
the entire field is questioned. This produces an instance
of lived experience that radiates outward from the center.
The tension between color and object—a recurring feature
in Öztopçu’s oeuvre—can be distinctly felt even in a small-scale
piece like “S. Center Crz.” Should we read this painting
as an interweaving of formal purity and a supporting pure
color? Or should we instead feel the tension of a color
that strives to be absorbed into it? A positive answer to
the second question does not differ much from an
affirmative answer to the first. This painting could
almost be viewed as a harbinger of the others—yet it is
not a conclusion. Rather, it represents a minimal gesture:
a distilled inquiry into whether purity itself can yield
tranquility, as the pure state of the object absorbs the
purest possible color.
Across these three works from different
periods, the latest pieces reveal an increase in the scale
and quantity of both dimension and form. In the 2010 and
2011 works “Floating Shelter” and “Sharp Shelter,” for
instance, the field of attraction formed by dualities is
now expanded and relaxed. The tension between the
centrally placed objects within the dense space and the
shelters—carrying black-and-white tonalities and perhaps
representing the self—is more explicitly revealed. In
works like “Striped Support,” “Balance,” and “Black
Shelter,” the confrontation zone of the object is rendered
entirely black. This compositional choice carries
connotations that are remarkably proximate to our present
lived reality.
The central object—perceived as an
expression formed through the effect field of its temporal
environment—reveals that these paintings are also zones of
experience. The intense dualities internal to them radiate
outward from the canvas, enabling these experiential
energies to transfer to the viewer and the surrounding
space. Before us, then, stand solemn presentations of
psychological processes that reflect the axis of time, the
lived, and the living. Perhaps for this reason, we must
view the object within the frame from a broader
perspective. The tension between the already living (already
present) and everything that rises, confronts, or becomes
visible upon contact with it signals potential internal
conflicts within the mind. Our eyes begin to see by
confronting those conflicts. The “Periods” exhibition is
not a gallery of abstract images transformed by time, but
rather a domain of portraits that, in every era, gaze upon
the witnessing of moments with the utmost immediacy.
It is also important to emphasize the
connection between two works from 1985 and Mine Art
Gallery. “Portrait I” and “Great Hollow” pioneer the later
works both formally and conceptually. Meanwhile, the
gallery itself began contributing to Contemporary Turkish
Art in the same year.
Originally published in Contemporary 1985, Issue 2
(Nov–Dec 2011).
Translated by Pýnar Sumer Biber
Avni Öztopcu's 'Road of Place'
Muammer Öner; Sanat Cevresi. Issue no.121
November 1988 Istanbul
H. Avni Öztopcu's
"Road of
Place" In his early works
(1985), he used black which he defined as "darkness" and
white which he defined as "light" as his basic tools.
1985
Büyük Oylum
We
see that he tried to reinforce the geometric speculative integrity
of the stratified contrasts created by lighted crystal brightness of
the mechanical objects which he places inside the dark spaces with
their grayish-white gradations, together with diagonal planes
including amorphous motives with elements of connections, motion,
repetition and texture. In his later works (1986),
1986
Meţale
while contrast
created by motion in the earlier stages where being replaced by
perpendicular and horizantal forms in conrast, rythmic elements
making the geometric planes of mechanical objects took the place of
contrast forms (Amorphous-Crystal). Grades of grayish-white
transformed into grades of colour. The rythmic elements of
repetition prevail their mechical structure while in search of their
appropriate place and function. It is not difficult to see that the
reason for this change in H. Avni Oztopcu's paintings is connected
with his orientation towards
1986
Yapraklar
"colour" and "motives"
which gained significance in his works. In fact in his later works
(1987) these two elements constitute the fundamental structure upon
which he builts his drawings. The function of the black and white
contrast in his early works are now transformed into the function of
colour contrasts. His passion for black and white contrast has been
transformed into grayish spaces and passages which he used in his
drawings.
1987
Tütün Çiçeđi
While mechanical decorations take the form of organic textures, "Planimetric" structure has been adopted with
respect to space as a result of this approach.
1988 -1989, sütunlar
Selected Excerpts from the 2021 MA Thesis by Esra Bayburt
Department of Painting,
Institute of Fine Arts, Erciyes University
A Critical Analysis of the
Paintings of Hüseyin Avni Öztopçu
Ahmet Özel:
“First of all, I do not speak only from the perspective of Öztopçu,
but generally each artist’s sources of inspiration and ideas are
very different. An artist may develop their perception based on the
sources they feed on, as well as through the artists they have
studied during their education and training. There is an object
perception, a color perception, and a structural composition
perception. Through these common perceptions, we all try to filter
them through our own worlds and make them our own. I look at Avni
Öztopçu’s paintings in this way. He uses a filter based both on art
history and his own emotional and individual world. The result of
this filter is a sense of structure, composition, and spatial
feeling.
When we look at his early works, we see that his abstract approach
gradually evolved toward a more minimal point in recent years.
Whatever his message is in terms of form and composition, he
emphasizes it strongly with color, form, and contrasts. We observe
repetitions, motifs, mysteries, and the concept of definite-indefinite
— these are plastic forms and ideas the artist seeks to deepen and
emphasize the effect of the artwork on the viewer. This is crucial
because while the artist’s individual expressions are valuable, the
connection and effect the artwork creates with the viewer are
equally important.
I believe that all the formal and compositional necessities of this
plastic world are fulfilled in Öztopçu’s works, and behind them, we
can see very important masters. For instance, when I look at his
early works, I can spot some influences from American painting,
especially works from 1988-1990. Perhaps one can trace echoes of Roy
Lichtenstein. Also, some of his early works relate to spaces curated
with a synthesis of singular forms and pop art tendencies seen in
American artists of that era.
But as we follow Avni Öztopçu’s trajectory, which spans nearly 30
years, we see an approach that states its message more clearly and
firmly. The artist increasingly stresses what he wants to say.”
Lütfiye Bozdađ:
“When we evaluate Avni Öztopçu’s works from the
perspective of color contrast or complementarity, form,
structure, composition, fictional space, time-space,
simultaneity, interval, succession, certainty-uncertainty,
and the concept of space-object collectively, it aligns
with the fundamental understanding of abstract art. From a
particular standpoint, the artist approaches the objects
of the visible world through an abstraction filtered by
his psychic world.
In his use of color, compositions, and
abstractions, we see reflections of the artist’s spiritual
world in the simultaneity and successive repetition of
forms. These reflections form a fictional space created
through the arrangement and sequencing of design elements
such as line, color, and plane. This reality is a cultural
product, an artwork produced by humans in response to
nature.
Max Scheler, in his book
The Place of Man in
the Cosmos, states that totality, time, and space are
nothing other than the order, state, and arrangement of
things, and that there is no space and time independent
from or outside of things. We can say that the perception
of time and space in Öztopçu’s paintings is based on the
same foundations but differs in the selection of
subjective spirituality.
Although some of Öztopçu’s paintings
may give the impression of being continuations or
successors of one another, no painting is truly a sequel
to another. The uniqueness, subjectivity, and originality
of the constructs he creates are hidden in the artist’s
spiritual world.
In Öztopçu’s paintings, contrast—between
shapes and colors—is indispensable for visual perception.
Without difference, the visibility between two shapes or
two colors cannot become distinct. Difference is necessary
for perception; where there is no difference, uncertainty
appears, which may eliminate distance and result in the
disappearance of both form and color.
We observe in Öztopçu’s paintings
mutual oppositions that balance one another both in color
and form. The sharper the artist makes this contrast, the
more the difference stands out. Contrast also keeps the
dynamism and movement in Öztopçu’s paintings alive. In
some works, the artist reduces contrasts to slow down
movement and dynamism, allowing us to reach silence and
serenity. However, in general, there is a clear light-dark
and warm-cold contrast.
The momentum in Öztopçu’s paintings is
enriched through contrasts; movement and counter-movement
keep vitality, and color contrast increases reactive
excitement.
The ambiguity in Öztopçu’s paintings
should be considered within the scope of abstract art. The
relationships between colors and forms are very clear and
explicit. Even with extension to extreme points, the
sharpness of contrast produces a precise relationality.
Each form exists distinctly on its own. The clarity and
definiteness among elements, especially at the boundaries
where they end and begin, are emphasized concretely and
sharply.
Forms are simultaneously independent
entities yet also subordinate to the whole. The state of
determination in Öztopçu’s paintings manifests in the
clear expression of individual forms; yet when viewed as a
whole, the composition formed by the arrangement carries
no particular relational meaning—this absence is the
existential character of abstraction.
In the world of abstraction, forms
exist purely as thoughts; the connections established
among elements abstracted from nature exist only in
thought.
Direction is expressed in Öztopçu’s
paintings through horizontals, verticals, and diagonals.
The artist benefits from directional contrasts but his
paintings are not merely susceptible to balancing these
oppositions.
The abstract world that Avni Öztopçu
creates in his works is a reality fashioned by the artist.
This reality is an arrangement and a structure composed of
fundamental design elements such as line, color, texture,
and plane that do not exist in nature.
This construct created in the artist’s
mind is rebuilt anew in every viewer’s gaze. While
constructing his compositions on the axis of contrast or
complementarity, the perceiver searches for a response,
roaming within the spirals of their consciousness and
subconsciousness while observing the work.
An artwork is not limited to the mind
of its creator or its perceiver; it contains all of these
and more. It is always more than it shows. Sometimes it
gives an impression of having uncovered the secret of an
undiscovered world, shaking the perceiver’s mind beyond
all dreams.
In abstract art, the visible forms are
constantly replaced and substituted. Against the boundary,
the concept of form as the fixed and clear, there is the
freedom provided by the ambiguity of abstraction, with
constantly moving forms appearing as new visible forms
each time they are seen.
In her book
Contemporary
Philosophy, Bedia Akarsu uses the example of a rock
to explain that there is no directedness in the physical
realm. “A rock maintains its existence within itself,
without connection to anything. However, a spiritual event
is always consciousness on something.” This consciousness
draws the objects of the visible world closer to absolute
values and feels the need to abstract.
In Öztopçu’s paintings, when the
perceiver encounters the abstract world, Worringer’s
conceptualization of abstraction and empathy emerges.
Human history, as a spiritual being within the flow of
time, wishes to reach new mental creations from the
changing possibilities in visible forms, and this is
possible through the urge to abstract.
The perceiver finds the opportunity to
experience the feelings of abstraction and empathy in the
face of the abstract world of Öztopçu’s paintings — with
their color, structure, fictional space, time-space,
simultaneity, interval, succession, and states of
certainty and uncertainty.
Ruţen Eţref Yýlmaz:
"The concepts of duration and space, simultaneity, and the
changes within his compositions have sometimes manifested
in repeated patterns. Approached from a holistic
perspective, his compositions take shape in a dimension of
polysemy. Through simple and austere forms, he has
endeavored to experience the depth of life and its value.
This effort reflects a desire to transition from a
confined space to a liberated environment. The balance of
opposing forms positioned on planes within duration and
space is the artist’s priority. Instead of speed,
separation, or fragmentation, his compositions embody a
sobriety and coherence formed by calm, static forms,
encouraging contemplation and intellectual inquiry.
His engagement with human, particular existence, and the
objects repeated in both reality and abstraction, as well
as their plastic relationships, constitute the content of
his conscious dialogues within his memory. This approach
signifies a sign of subjectivity and the formation of the
true “self.” In the object-duration relation, the artist
emphasizes that objects are not solely tied to space;
duration is also an integral part, thereby endowing his
works with a conceptual dimension. The multi-faceted act
of seeing oriented towards polysemy enables intuitive
unveiling of the reality behind what appears in his works."
"Beginning between 1913 and 1915 with art theorist and
Suprematism founder Kazimir Malevich, the notion of a non-objective
world perception through geometric abstraction paved the
way for contemporary art, creating a possibility for
liberation. I believe Avni Öztopçu’s plastic language is
rooted in this tradition. The artist embraces abstract
geometricity, prioritizing the contradictions of
horizontal, vertical, and diagonal forms, abstracting the
structure of the universe, and pursuing a figurative-free
understanding. These explorations are imbued with
philosophical and psychological content, involving
symbolic processes that strengthen the artist’s
ontological artistic foundation."
