My art is a spiritual journey, an exploration of the intangible realms that lie beyond the surface of our everyday experiences. As a spiritual artist, I seek to capture the essence and soul of places and individuals through abstract forms and vibrant colors. My work delves into the idea that what we see is not always what truly exists; the world is full of illusions and smoke and mirrors, but within us lies the ability to see beyond the lies and deceptions.
By focusing on the emotional and atmospheric energy that defines our existence, I aim to peel back the layers of reality and reveal the profound connections that unite us all. My paintings invite viewers to look deeper, to question their perceptions, and to uncover the hidden truths that lie beneath the surface. Each brushstroke and color choice is an intentional act of capturing the visceral, often unseen, aspects of our world.
In my abstract landscapes and auric portraits, I strive to evoke a sense of connection and curiosity, encouraging viewers to engage with the art on a deeper, more intuitive level. My process is deeply intuitive and expressive, allowing me to channel the emotions and energies that define a place or a person.
Through my art, I hope to inspire others to see and feel between and beyond what is immediately visible. By challenging perceptions and revealing the essence of our shared experiences, I aim to create pieces that resonate deeply with viewers, reminding them of the beauty and complexity of life. In a world full of illusions, my work seeks to illuminate the truth and foster a deeper appreciation of the spiritual and emotional dimensions of our existence.
Where it all began…
Ozlem Yikici is a multidisciplinary artist, predominantly working with oil paints and watercolour. She explores the relationship of abstract forms within a landscape setting. Experimenting with the Surrealists technique of automatic drawing to elicit a responsive way of creating and viewing. Her fascination in working this way started when studying at university. She took the humble doodle, a 1 x 1 inch sketch, and elevated it into a big Lifesize sculptural painting, see: A Doodle. From which point she started to superimpose doodles onto landscape imagery to juxtapose meaning of what was being viewed. The Earthquake Series is an example of this way of working, where the doodles are a metaphor for the earthquake; a debris, disrupting the visuals of a beautiful landscape setting.
Over the years her curiosity in translating the immediacy of the erratic doodle pen-work into oil-paintings became her focus. Creating form, redirecting the energy of the doodles to convey expression and emotion. This, developed over time, as she started to work with watercolour paints. The fluidity of the paint and brushstrokes captured the essence of immediacy within the pen-work she was seeking. Combining colour and automatism, she explores abstraction within landscape settings. This curiosity of capturing the essence of doodling using automatism brought an understanding of intuitive artwork. The ability to turn energies into paintings. Aura portraits. By capturing the essence of auras she has been able to create a different kind of portrait, inner world portraits. This discovery has led her to think about parameters and the boundaries put on us in society. How ‘boxed-in’ we are, that certain rules, regulations, and procedures need to be followed.
Her innovative understanding of tuning into energies and creating a different portrait has her following the breadcrumbs of what essentially defines us. What parameters surrounds us, in essence what makes up our identities. Why are we expected to conform? What makes us unique? These questions prompt her to highlight a different way of being, seeing. One where individuality is key. To do this, she believes that by bridging the gap between abstract and figurative art and through creating alternative worlds where nothing is as it seems. Where the ordinary morphs into otherworldly with expressionistic and surreal brushstrokes, will bring a new way to be curious and explore freely.
Yikici seeks to tease defined borders through exploration and questions the necessity to conform. For all those who have been ‘passing’ through life, she brings this body of work to encourage them to ‘be you, in a world where you’re expected to ‘fit-in’.