Soylu creates a world from her own experiences, from things she witnessed, places she visited and poems she reads. Following the traces of destruction that happen in various ways along with the effects and scars of oppression and suppression, these themes are addressed not only on a social level but also through references to the artist’s personal history. Soylu brings these works together under a body of work titled “And the House Frowned”, an ongoing series since 2013. The exhibition "Not Being Forgotten, How Strange!", titled as a reference to Metin Altıok’s (1940-1993) Sonnets, is a fragment within the larger series.
“And the House Frowned” is a line from Metin Altıok’s poem “The Demolishers Arrived.” The poem examines the process of a house’s demolition. On one hand, it narrates step by step the house’s gradual dismantling until only its skeleton remains; on the other, it recalls a moment from the past shared by lovers sitting in a tea garden. The poem weaves together inner and outer forms of destruction, memory and presence, creating a tension between what is lost and what endures. This series dwells on the notions of longing and belonging.
From the artist’s words: “Poetry itself runs like an undercurrent through my practice. Metin Altıok’s poetry held a deep place in my heart and practice, especially in my twenties. I believe that when poetry is translated into form, what endures is the feeling itself. Altıok, who was among the thirty-four people burned alive in the 1993 Sivas Massacre, wrote with disarming vulnerability, turning everyday pain into quiet truth. My search for belonging through materials feels deeply intertwined with his search through words. For me, poetry comes before art; it is everywhere, in everything. Poetry is the moment, art is its manifestation.“