Hayv Kahraman

For Hayv Kahraman’s Solo Exhibition, The Third Line Gallery needed a simple catalogue to showcase the artist’s work. But the artist’s concept was too powerful to be boiled down to a simple brochure. Hayv expresses contempt at women’s compliance to social pressure dictating how they should look and what parts of their bodies they should alter, shave or thread. Taking on a sarcastic approach to the topic, she paints beautification rituals as innocent games, emphasizing the separation of the female body from her psyche throughout her works.

Hinting at the artist’s sarcastic tone, the catalogue was designed in such a way where loose pages come together, as in a puzzle, to playfully complete one of her artworks. The envelope that holds them together requires the audience to tear it open right at the neckline of one of her characters, separating her mind from her body. The experience of opening the catalogue was in and by itself a tangible expression of the artist’s serious social statement.