by Belkis Balpinar (Artist), Necmi Sönmez (Editor)
A survey of the prolific work of a Turkish artist who developed a contemporary visual language using a flat-weave "kilim" technique
With her large-scale woven pieces, hanging sculptures and wall installations spanning four decades, Turkish artist Belkis Balpinar's (born 1941) textile experiments are a continuously evolving process medley of material and shape in service of unexpected narratives. Her "art-kilims" amalgamate her technical knowledge of traditional flat weaves with imaginative shapes and interpretations of centuries-old paradigms. Balpinar's commissions include pieces for the World Bank Building in Washington, DC, and the Marmara-Manhattan Hotel in New York. Through Woven Times is a kaleidoscopic glimpse into the subjects, themes and formal concerns of her creations, in which a semiabstract visual language predominates. Echoing cosmic geometries, her work can be seen as a humanistic projection field that emphasizes our universal commonalities, hopes and dreams.