ÖMER ALİ KAZMA

The works of Ömer Ali Kazma is a stage systematically designed to confront those moments where all means of communication collapse and language ceases to convey meaning. His artistic trajectory from earlier works, such as “Razor of Tebris” and “Nuclear Family,” to such recent ones as “Supersonic Family” is marked with the themes of breakdowns in communication and the loss of signification in language.

The tension Kazma evokes with the interplay of different energies does not intend to refer to any particular, experienced situation, but, instead, it allows for multiple readings through the multi-layered references that are intrinsic to his work. This further stressed with ambiguous, almost abstract settings. As a result, the artist invokes a sense of déja-vu, something that surely feels as experienced, but resists to be named.

“Supersonic Family,” which was shown in the 7 th International Istanbul Biennial alongside four other video works by Ömer Ali Kazma, explores the disorienting speed of the modern world that forces the individual to move along. Excluding all traces of narration from the work and recalling the constancy of macrocosmic spin, Kazma reanimates the speed of daily life by the repeated whirl of family members and friends around himself. The fragmented structure of the video is accentuated with the repetition of unintelligible words uttered by these people, which creates an obscure rhythm, alluding to the problem of miscommunication.

“It Rains” was projected onto the damp walls of the Yerebatan Cistern, a Byzantine subterranean structure that served as one of the venues of the 7 th Istanbul Biennial, and shows rain drops hitting a window. With the help of digital technology and such visual effects as cutting and repeating, individual moments are captured and transformed into mechanical rhythms.

In his most recent project the artist turns his interest towards one of the most significant myths of popular culture in Turkey, the Galatasaray football team. Over a period of one year he has filmed the lively scene of their games, their fans, and their lives outside the stadiums. In his new video project, fragments from this large body of work are put together to incite the euphoria created around the team, but also to disclose what is mundane behind the myth. Kazma uses 12 LCD monitors to simulate an entire game. Reminiscent of his earlier works, this video installation explores the possibility of recreating the rhythm of football through captured moments. Ömer Ali Kazma strips football from its own popular context and relocates it in a field where different reverberations of obsession are displayed.

(Emre Baykal)