Palimpsest

Visuals and text had never met like this before…

Deniz Barlas Velioğlu’s book, Palimpsest, has been published by YEM Yayın.

Deniz Barlas Velioğlu explains her unique artistic approach as follows:

“The visual-textual language I have developed consists of two fundamental layers: printed materials, mostly newspaper pages, and what I construct upon them. The dialogue/collision of these two worlds, which might contain limited meanings on their own, generates 'additional meanings.' The newspaper page, with its texts, photographs, colors, and textures, often serves as a visual-semantic starting point that inspires me. The world I construct on top sometimes rejects and ignores the existence of the one below, and sometimes responds to it. In both cases, they form a semantic unity. I hope that this synergy will awaken new associations in the viewer, taking them on journeys.”

“Deniz Barlas Velioğlu’s paintings remind us that nothing is merely what it appears to be, which I believe is one of art's fundamental functions.”

- Prof.Dr. Haluk Şahin, Lecturer, Communication Theorist, Author

“As I looked and read, I got lost in my own palimpsest; it was both a 'common' (sociological) and an 'individual' (psychic) experience. I recommend it to you as well.”

- Prof.Dr. Orhan Tekelioğlu, Cultural Sociologist

“In my eyes, Deniz’s paintings are as powerful and meaningful as a striking book cover or a poster. She blends written language with visual language, creating a thoughtful-artistic layer.”

- Uğurcan Ataoğlu, Co-founder and Design Director of Alametifarika, Lecturer

“When I saw her paintings on newspaper pages and printed documents, I commented, ‘This is the true art of our age’.”

- Rahmi Çöğendez, RC Art Gallery

“The music I composed for Deniz’s paintings still holds a very special value for me, as it emerged from a very powerful state of ecstasy.”

- Prof.Dr. Yüksel Demir, Architect

“There are codes, clues everywhere. It’s like an endless game, a true discovery.”

- Prof.Dr. Hülya Kayserili, Geneticist

WHO IS DENİZ BARLAS VELİOĞLU?

Deniz Barlas Velioğlu was born in Istanbul in 1961. She attended primary school in various cities, including London, Brighton, and Ankara. She completed her middle and high school education at TED Ankara College. In 1982, she graduated from the Middle East Technical University (METU) with a degree in Sociology. Between 1989 and 2009, she worked as a Creative Director and Agency President at national and international advertising agencies. She won numerous awards in national and international competitions and served as a jury member and president. Due to her interest in art and design, which began in her childhood, she particularly focused on painting. She has held solo exhibitions and participated in group exhibitions. The artist, whose more than 150 works are found in various collections both in Turkey and abroad, continues her painting work in her studios in Istanbul and Bozcaada.

PALIMPSEST

Deniz Barlas Velioğlu describes her artistic life and her unique understanding of art as follows:

“The visual-textual language I developed consists of two basic layers: mostly newspaper pages and what I’ve built on them. The dialogue/collision of these two worlds, which can have limited meanings on their own, creates ‘additional meanings’. With its writings, photographs, colors, and textures, most of the time the newspaper page creates a visual-semantic starting point for me that I will be inspired by. The world I build on it, on the other hand, sometimes rejects and ignores the existence of the one below, and sometimes responds to it. In both cases, they form a semantic unity. I hope that this union will awaken new associations of ideas in the minds of viewers and take them on new journeys.”

“Deniz Barlas Velioğlu’s paintings remind us that nothing is just what it seems, which I think is one of the main functions of art.”

- Prof.Dr. Haluk Şahin, Lecturer, Communication Theorist, Author

“I was lost in my own palimpsest as I stared Deniz’s paintings; unfortunately, it was both a ‘common” (sociological) and an ‘individual’ (psychic) experience. I suggest that you do it.”

- Prof.Dr. Orhan Tekelioğlu, Cultural Sociologist

“To my eyes, her paintings are as powerful and meaningful as a stunning book cover or a poster. She creates a philosophic-artistic layer by blending textual language and visual language.”

- Uğurcan Ataoğlu, Co-founder and Design Director of Alametifarika, Lecturer

I started to follow Deniz’s works and especially when I saw the paintings she drew on newspaper papers and printed documents, I commented that “this is the real art of our age.”

- Rahmi Çöğendez, RC Art Gallery

“But the score I composed for Deniz that night is still very special to me, as it was born from a powerful state of ecstasy.”

- Prof.Dr. Yüksel Demir, Architect

“There are passwords, hints everywhere. It's like an endless game, a real breakthrough.”

- Prof.Dr. Hülya Kayserili, Geneticist

WHO IS DENİZ BARLAS VELİOĞLU?

Deniz Barlas Velioğlu was born in 1961 in Istanbul. She attended primary school in cities, including London, Brighton, and Ankara. She completed her secondary and high school education at TED Ankara College and graduated from the Sociology Department at METU in 1982. Between 1989 and 2009, she worked as a Creative Director and CEO for national and international advertising agencies. She has won many awards both in national and international competitions, and has taken part in some of them as a member and head of the jury. Since her childhood years, she has worked in the field of painting and has a strong interest in art and design. She has opened personal exhibitions and participated in group exhibitions. As an artist with over 150 works in various national and international collect