Alp Sime Laki

Alp Sime’s  7th solo exhibition ‘Laki’, including mostly his latest works, can be viewed between 1 December - 16 January  at MARTCH Art Project.

‘Laki’ is a lubunca word. Lubunca is a secret language which reaches out to the 17th century and born out of the necessity for protection. The language originates from 'köçek's (cross-dressed young male dancers in Ottoman Empire), to trans women and later on to the whole LGBTIQ+ movement. The exhibition focuses on  the concepts as secrecy politics, shame and trauma, to suppress and being suppressed. The artist regarding the purpose of this language, wants the meaning of ‘Laki’ to stay as a “secret”.

Born in 1970, Istanbul, the artist with his enchanting works is undoubtedly one of the most important figures in contemporary photography. Sime who works on poetic, impressive themes that are not difficult to interpret, offers a sensitive and personal access to the urban space and its dwellers. Evidently, his choices in approaching the human subject are very different from a classical approach to portraiture. In his choice of themes, Alp Sime always succeeds at making us understand that urban coexistence is only temporary, and he does so by appealing to our personal experience for association. He strongly communicates the feelings of loneliness, being lost and melancholy. The photographer pursues the unfamiliar, yet unseen and coincidental, and often the extraordinary. Unlike most photographers of his generation, he has succeeded at creating an expressive language that distinguishes him from the others, i.e. building his own style. Alp Sime is among the masters of his artistic discipline.