Paintings in the exhibition “Gönen Atakol – Retrospektive 1970 – 2013” at EMAA Art Centre

By Heidi Trautmann

It was the right choice to celebrate the Worlds Arts Day, a perfect collection of paintings and drawings, the work of 40 years by a painter who has been humble towards art and life in general, who respects nature and mankind, as - I would say – it should be. The more you learn and see, the more humble you become.

Gönen Atakol has a clear sight of things, a feeling for the essence, focusing to the kernel of truth, with clean colours and forms, our gaze supported and guided by strict graphic frames, entering into another dimension. You can feel her love for her country, its colours and the marriage of earth, sea and sky, but also the homogeneous forms in nature, the view over land and hills, is something that touches you as a déjà-vu.

The human form, women, real women, as ink drawings with clear lines; those sketches of the 70s and those of 2007-2011, with bold spaces of colour and intimate details of design in a dress or a cushion, always respecting the laws of composition.

There was a big crowd of friends coming to the opening, people who have never been to EMAA Art Centre and who were amazed to find an extraordinary exhibition at such a beautiful venue, others who only know Gönen’s drawings were just as much amazed to see the whole spectre of her art work, and others who were her students said so very proudly, she was my art teacher, Selen Hastürk, Eser Kececi, just to name a few. Yes, they are grateful because she taught them that there is no right or wrong in art.

The exhibition will be taken to other places I have heard. I will keep my readers informed.

See my website for more pictures.