My name is Denizhan Kemaloğlu, I was born in the city of Istanbul in Turkey and I spent my whole childhood in Istanbul. Later I went to Ordu to study in the painting department at Ordu University. Now I am in the last class as a painting student and I came to Amsterdam for three months as part of the Erasmus Internship Program.
Istanbul is a city with an incredible collective life, I think it is similar to Amsterdam with a structure that makes it possible to find people from everywhere and every culture. I spent my childhood in Istanbul and I can say that I am in love with my city. We are used to saying that Istanbul is a city that never sleeps. Then I went to Ordu for university, which is a small city in the north of Turkey. Ordu is a rural city that does not attract many tourists.
Since I was a child I was making drawings, and this started with caricature drawing and then, later on, I chose the painting department at the university because I wanted to learn more. Painting is a large part of my life, as well as music. I love listening to music and I try to make music often nowadays.
This is my third day in Amsterdam and my first day in Nieuw-West. I did not know that there was such a big Muslim population here, I can say that it was incredibly surprising, and it feels strange to hear Turkish sentences on the streets on my first tour with SAMA. It is perfect to hear something from your own language in a cultural and social environment that you never belonged to.
As I generally paint, I have tried to work on many different surfaces. For me, the most impressive part of street art is that it is open to the public, everyone can join this art whenever and wherever they want and I think it is extra freedom. I have a few street artist friends in Istanbul and I spend time with them from time to time.
The most interesting aspect of street art is that it is open to the public without discussion. it has the chance to watch more than one person at any time and in the place. Art is about telling the future people the period we live in. And some arts aim to do this directly, like street art. Also, this means a piece of color in the grey cities we live in and colors make everyone feel good.
The reason I came to SAMA is that, as an art student, I need to do an internship within the Erasmus program and I can say that the street corresponds to my lifestyle. In this context, SAMA was an excellent option for me. It is also an institution where I can learn everything about street art and this is exactly what I am looking for. I am super sure I will meet many street artists in SAMA.
My favorite artwork from SAMA's collection is, for now, Bastardilla - Memories. I think that she is an artist who has done big and impressive works using the colors very well.
My task at SAMA will be to assist with the website, write articles, publish articles on social media (and blog), give tours and help improve the marketing of SAMA.
For me what is interesting in SAMA is that it tries to preserve street art and fills a neighborhood with artworks. At the same time, it is trying to bring world-class street artists to a neighborhood that does not attract many tourists in Amsterdam, to entertain them and to develop the neighborhood.
I want to meet various street artists around the world in SAMA and I believe there are many things I can learn from them. Also, I am sure that I can learn how to manage my art in SAMA because for me, it is very important to know how to manage and market the art we do nowadays. I believe I can learn a lot about art management at SAMA and I can also understand how to manage a small art group in the future through learning how to solve problems and taking more responsibility here.