Kubilay Mert Ural

Accompanying the film is a new series of paintings produced on metal plates pierced with gunshots. These were produced in an isolated location outside of Istanbul after Mert Ural painted their surfaces with a recurring character symbolising the cruelty of fear suffered by civilians in the space of conflict. The character is an animalesque figure inspired by children’s drawings produced in war zones that shows the psychology of those children trapped and invisibilized in a world laced with inhuman conditions. The cold metallic tone of institutions and bureaucracies incapable of valuing the greater meaning of life are countered with their vibrant strokes of color that bring hope of escape and a better world. Mert Ural’s work aims to highlight how traumatic childhoods shape future generations, but rather than despair, asks how these experiences can be channeled into positive changes for all.