Canan Tolon: Loss

The publication, which also draws on the display of the installation as part of the group exhibition Precaution (03/06/2021–20/02/2022) curated by Emre Baykal at Arter, features a comprehensive interpretive text written by Erdem Ceylan. In her installation Loss, Tolon gives another chance to her works that were damaged during the San Francisco Bay Area earthquake of 1989, suffered from shipping accidents due to improper packaging, or were affected by inadequate storage conditions which render them worthless in terms of their market and exhibition value. Adopting an experimental approach, Ceylan explores Tolon’s work in the form of an Ancient Greek tragedy by “damaging” and transforming the set of literary conventions peculiar to this form through a postmodern technique. Proceeding with the dialogues of two characters, Hephaistos and Daidalos, who were locked in Arter overnight because the closing time of the exhibitions had passed, but turned this state into an occasion to start a discussion on art and life, the book provides a context that can convey the love-hate relationship between the “artistic” ego seeking permanence and immortality and the alter ego which is at peace with life. The third book of the series, designed by Esen Karol, includes installation photographs by flufoto (Barış Aras and Elif Çakırlar), as well as close-up images that interpret the idea of loss with more detail.