Sky of Artifice, 2019
Didem Erbaş & Merve Ünsal, Sky of Artifice, 2019. Plastic rug, led lights. 1.5 x 2 m.
Didem Erbaş & Merve Ünsal, Sky of Artifice, 2019. Plastic rug, led lights. 1.5 x 2 m. Installation view from The Evil Men Do at Artist 2019, TÜYAP, Istanbul.
The floor installation is made up of two elements. The plastic rugs, often used outdoors to prevent slipping, were purchased from an underground pass at İMÇ (Istanbul Manufacturers Bazaar), which flooded during heavy rains. There were watermarks on the rugs, which we mimicked, deepened, and repeated using a knife. We mirrored the artificial lighting of the fair environment, where the work was first exhibited, to draw attention to trigger a flickering of the gaze up and down. We were interested in seeing if doubling the artificiality materially would produce a sense of naturalness.
