About Me
Melek Mazici (born November 25, 1956 in Istanbul, Turkey) is a visual artist living and working in Finland since 1981, initially settling in Turku, and later making Helsinki her hometown. Combining both Finnish and Turkish culture has become a way of life as well as a strong source of artistic inspiration.
In her new art there are more color surfaces than before, instead of translucency and shades, and in addition to it. Mazici has boldly stepped into the world of colors.
“My own approach to art is always based on a personal experience. So also, in my new art. I bring colors, textures, lights, and surfaces I see around me to my new work. The surface of the painting also varies, and it can be matte, velvety, or translucent”, Mazici says.
Mazici often brings the images of the subconscious out into the light of day. Contrasting space and peaceful harmony combine in her paintings. It is only possible in the deep images produced by our minds.
There are rhythm and signs inside the paintings. Mazici also uses a lot of white surfaces in her art so that the paintings can breathe and give space to the viewers experience. Sometimes she paints white over white.
“The name of my exhibition “Endless” has inspired me in a lot of ways. It is also a philosophically interesting phenomenon. The natural scientist and philosopher Charles Darwin has said that the endless forms of nature are the most beautiful and wonderful. I don’t plan the shapes in advance, but my thoughts are endless. Even though my thoughts have a beginning and an ending, I give myself and the viewer complete freedom to interpret the art”, Mazici says.
The view at the sea is endless, endless. In a Japanese garden simplicity creates something forever and endless. Simplicity is beauty.
Mazici (born 1956) has studied at the Turkish State Academy of Fine Arts in Istanbul (1975–1981), the Finnish Academy of Fine Arts (1984–1989) and the Swedish Royal Institute of Art (1989–1990). She has worked in London, Helsinki, Stockholm, Paris, Brussels and New York. At the moment, Mazici lives and works in Helsinki, Finland.
Mazici has expressed herself through graphic art, installations and acrylic paintings, and recently watercolors. Since the year 1980, Mazici has had regular solo exhibitions and has participated in numerous group exhibitions in Finland and abroad in Turkey, the United States, France, Japan, Germany and Ireland. Melek Mazici is a two-time recipient (2000, 2010) of the five-year Finnish State Grant for Artists. Her artwork is also featured in private and public collections around the world. In Finland, her work is included in the Finnish National Gallery, the Helsinki City Art Museum and the Pori Art Museum collections. In Turkey, Mazici’s work is displayed at the Galeri Nev gallery, and has also been acquired in significant private collections.
In 2014, Transparency, a book detailing Melek Mazici’s artwork, received an award recognizing it as one of the most beautiful Finnish books.