‘The Dilemma of Light’ presents an exploration of the two most fundamental elements of human perception, light and darkness, white and black. The harmony hidden in the contrasts of white and black is not only a visual opposition, but also a tool for understanding the complexity of life, existence, and man’s relationship with nature. This exhibition travels along the borders of the metaphor of the presence and absence of light, exploring the effects of these two fundamental elements on the individual and society.

Light is a symbol of knowledge and visibility; darkness is a representation of the unknown and mystery. However, in this exhibition, the relationship between light and darkness is treated as a dialogue rather than an opposition. The shadow is the intersection point of this relationship; an intermediate space where presence and absence, light and darkness, past and future merge. The artists reflect the implicit stories of shadows, the potential of the invisible and the explanatory power of light in their works.

White and black are analysed not only in terms of their physical or optical properties, but also in terms of the conceptual dimensions to which they attribute meaning. In this exhibition, white is redefined not as purity, not as brightness, darkness not only as absence, but also as productivity, as potential; it is seen as a combination of all colours, that is, as a wholeness.

The artists explore the relationship of the individual and society with shadows, forgotten memories, lost and forgotten stories, and echoes in the collective memory of humanity. The works in the exhibition include an interdisciplinary diversity such as painting, sculpture, relief, video and spatial arrangement. The participating artists present different interpretations of black and white in their works while dealing with topics such as human memory, the transformation of nature and the inner journey of the individual: A. Elif Aydoğmuş aims to make the forgotten memories visible while dealing with the individual’s confrontation with the past in depth in her sculptures. Ayşegül Düşek presents the relationship between human and nature with organic works that question how light transforms this bond. Ferhat Tunç deals with the loss of social memory through the ashes of burnt texts. Hamza Kırbaş questions the themes of honesty and reality with metaphors in his video work ‘Pinocchio Syndrome’. Sümer Sayın explores the boundaries of the concrete and the abstract by representing the lost parts of nature with shadows. Uğur Bişirici transforms the self-renewal power of nature and the traces left by human labour into a metaphor of existence. Yağmur Korkut analyses the relationship between light and space with forms that recall the collective memory of humanity. Yılmaz Bulut depicts the modern world’s confrontation with migration and memory loss through the monumental silence of rocks.

‘The Dilemma of Light’ aims to initiate a collective dialogue about human memory while creating a space for individual questioning. The presence and absence of light is reinterpreted not only as a visual experience, but also as a thought practice that invites the viewer to think.