Uncensorable, Passing Time

Uncensorable, Passing Time brings the artist’s childhood self and present self together in an imagined encounter. Two versions of the same person, sharing a moment that may never have happened.
Through this imagined encounter, Gülmen reflects on how our bodies, desires and sense of self are shaped from childhood by expectations, restrictions and different forms of control. She questions whether growing older and finding ways to liberate ourselves truly frees us from these constraints or whether they simply take on new forms.

Gülmen has long been fascinated by how the same seemingly joyful scene can feel like a happy memory to one person and a painful one to another. What might be a happy childhood memory for one person could be an entirely different experience for someone else. Is this a joyful moment? A dream, a fantasy or a trauma? What would we say to the little girls we once were? Can the past and present exist in the same moment?

Created for a private collection in Ankara, Turkey, this large-scale ceramic mosaic mural measures was installed directly onto the wall. It consists of approximately 1,600 individually hand-painted glazed ceramic tiles, featuring a palette of around 55 custom-developed colors.