Nejat Sati: Light in the Dark

Pi Artworks Istanbul is pleased to present Nejat Sati's solo exhibition Light in the Dark from 16 December 2017 - 27 January 2018 at our new space in Karakoy. After presenting the Cracks exhibition at Pi Artworks London in 2016, Satı's three new series demonstrate the power of light through experimental approaches on canvas.

The title Light in the Dark represents hope amidst the pessimism of the world. In this exhibition, Satı tests the surface of the canvas, oscillating between different levels of density using a simplified color palette. The artist leaves the viewer with a sense of unlimited possibilities, reflecting the movement of our emotional world through light transitions; at times leaving us in darkness and at others revealing a light through that darkness.

Satı's dynamic and abstract forms reinforce the material's own creative potential. The three canvases in the first series, also titled Light in the Dark, are composed of layers of black and white paint that, through his use of pearlescent and incandescent shades, appear like radiating cosmic rays. Due to his technique of rendering illumination with light and dark tones, different light strains arise at various times of the day. Two more bodies of work will also be exhibited. In Aurora, subdued jewel tones sweep across the canvas and past its edges, not unlike the sublime natural phenomena of the Aurora Borealis. In the last series, which is a continuation of Cracks, black paint gives the surfaces the effect of shards of glass and contemplates individual and social violence. In these new bodies of work, the distribution of color creates depth, adding to their sense of mystery, whilst the use of light that unites all of them, most importantly, symbolizes hope.

Nejat Satı, b. 1982. Major exhibitions include: Cracks, Pi Artworks London, England (2016); The Power of Form, Plato Sanat, Istanbul, Turkey (2016); Nefs (solo), Pi Artworks Istanbul, Turkey (2014); Istanbul Art Scene (solo), Yallay Gallery, Hong Kong (2014); Hot Spot Istanbul, Haus Konstruktiv, Zurich, Switzerland (2013); State of Mind(solo), Pi Artworks Istanbul, Turkey (2012); Organic Abstract (solo), Pi Artworks Istanbul, Turkey (2012); Encounters, Turkish Contemporary Art in Korea, Araart, Seoul, South Korea (2012); If Nature is Heaven, Hell is The City, Cer Modern, Ankara, Turkey (2011); and When Ideas Become Crime, Depo, Istanbul, Turkey (2010).