Aylin Zaptçıoğlu’s seventh solo exhibition in her career and second solo show at x-ist, “in situ/ex situ" examines the relationship humankind has built with itself and everything else. The exhibition “in situ/ex situ” describes the utilitarian relationship with nature, animals, and even with humans and the insensible commodification of their reality as a reflection of humankind’s connection with itself.
This exhibition by Aylin Zaptçıoğlu, who focused on the relationship between humans and nature in her previous shows, comprises works about how humankind has distanced itself from nature over the centuries and regarded its identity above all else.
From the Latin phrase that lends its name to the exhibition, ‘in situ’ means on-site examination. Since it describes a concept that takes a holistic perspective towards all the data about the reality of any finding, it also means being sensitive toward that thing’s existence. However, humankind’s approach to nature becomes the representation of straying away from the concept of ‘in situ’ as a result of the fact that humans stopped being a creature that can live in harmony with nature and became something which can control everything.
“Ex situ” is the conservation of natural creatures torn apart from their whole by making them easier to perceive for the human perception, and it expresses an option that is not in harmony with nature. The fact that humankind refused to take life as it was and developed a controlling ego to feel safe in addition to the caricatured figures of singular stance can be read as the humankind’s effort to liken nature to itself in order to make sense of it.
The exhibition “in situ/ex situ” brings together different series linked through various materials and techniques. Aylin Zaptçıoğlu’s works, which are produced with mixed technique using ink, gouache, and watercolor paints, are accompanied by patterns and prints with engraving techniques.
Aylin Zaptçıoğlu’s exhibition “in situ/ex situ” can be visited at x-ist between November 26, 2020 and January 15, 2021.