WRITING A “BIOGRAPHY” IS A STRANGE THING.AFTER ALL, IT’S NOT THE YEARS, THE WORK, OR THE SCHOOLS THAT TRULY SHAPE A PERSON.STILL, IT'S WORTH TRYING—TO SEE IF WE CAN OFFER A GLIMPSE OF WHO WE ARE AMONG ALL THESE DEFINITIONS.AS EXPECTED, WE BEGIN IN THE THIRD PERSON—LOOKING FROM THE OUTSIDE IN.SHE WAS BORN IN ISTANBUL IN 1959 AND GRADUATED FROM BOÄžAZIÇI UNIVERSITY IN 1978.HER CREATIVE JOURNEY, WHICH BEGAN WITH PHOTOGRAPHY, GRADUALLY EXPANDED, MOVING ACROSS DISCIPLINES AND THROUGH DIFFERENT PHASES.IN THE 1980S, SHE FOUNDED A COLOR PRINTING LAB AND STUDIO CALLED PINA, WHERE SHE CONTINUED HER OWN PRACTICE WHILE ALSO PROVIDING SERVICES FOR THE THEATER WORLD AND THE ADVERTISING SECTOR.SHE WORKED AS AN EDITOR FOR REFO MAGAZINE ON PHOTOGRAPHIC ARTS, SERVED AS A PRODUCT MANAGER AT POLAROID TURKEY, AND TOOK ON ROLES AS A COPYWRITER AND CLIENT EXECUTIVE AT VARIOUS ADVERTISING AGENCIES.IN 1996, SHE ESTABLISHED HER OWN COMMUNICATION DESIGN AGENCY, CONTINUING TO WORK IN VISUAL DESIGN AND COMMERCIAL PHOTOGRAPHY.BETWEEN 2014 AND 2019, SHE IMMERSED HERSELF IN PAINTING. SINCE 2018, SHE HAS BEEN DEVELOPING HER SCULPTURAL PRACTICE THROUGH SUSTAINED STUDIO WORK.SHE CONTINUES TO PRODUCE ACROSS PAINTING, SCULPTURE, PHOTOGRAPHY, AND DESIGN IN HER OWN STUDIO.SINCE 2015, HER WORK HAS BEEN FEATURED IN SOLO AND GROUP EXHIBITIONS BOTH IN TURKEY AND INTERNATIONALLY.
THIS IS WHAT’S VISIBLE FROM THE OUTSIDE.
REFLECTIONS ON THE WORK
HER PRACTICE FLOWS BETWEEN DISCIPLINES AND EVOLVES THROUGH IMPROVISATION.EACH WORK FEELS LIKE A FRAGMENT OF A GREATER WHOLE—SOMETIMES A SCULPTURE, SOMETIMES A PHOTOGRAPH, SOMETIMES WORDS,OR SIMPLY A QUIET WAITING.THAT WHOLE BECOMES VISIBLE OVER TIME, LIKE A TRACE SLOWLY EMERGING.LOOKING CLOSELY AT PEOPLE—AND AT ONESELF—WITH A DEEPENING AWARENESS OVER THE YEARS, CAN FEEL LIKE A KIND OF BURDEN.AND THAT AWARENESS DOESN’T MAKE THINGS LIGHTER.BUT THAT WEIGHT IS ALSO THE SOURCE OF CREATION.FOR SEDEF ANTAY, ART IS A WAY OF TOUCHING SOMETHING THAT EXISTS OUTSIDE TIME AND EXPERIENCE.ALL THOSE WORRIES AND JOYS SEEM TO ESCAPE INTO ANOTHER DIMENSION.
FOR NOW, ART SEEMS TO BE THE ONLY WAY TO RECORD IT
HUGINVEMUNIN ARTWORKS
IN 2020, SHE FOUNDED THE HUGINVEMUNIN COLLECTIVE IN KUZGUNCUK—NOT JUST AN ART SPACE, BUT A MULTIDISCIPLINARY PLATFORM FOR CREATIVE EXCHANGE. IT WAS A LIVING STRUCTURE, SHAPED BY EXHIBITIONS, JAZZ AND CHAMBER MUSIC CONCERTS, PHILOSOPHY AND LITERATURE GATHERINGS, WORKSHOPS, AND SEMINARS. AS A NON-COMMERCIAL PLATFORM, IT REACHED ITS AUDIENCE THROUGH BOTH PHYSICAL AND DIGITAL SPACES. IN FEBRUARY 2025, IT PAUSED ITS ACTIVITIES IN THE PHYSICAL SPACE IN KUZGUNCUK. BUT IT IS NOT CLOSED—JUST IN TRANSFORMATION.
IT IS RESHAPING ITSELF TO BE REBORN.
