......and WHY EPHESUS PAINTINGS

Whenever I came to the ancient city of Ephesus,ý drew designs.
At first there were no a different meanings of these,than my drawings,as usual.

In the Autumn of 2002 I had an exhibition in the ancient 'Spices Shop'
and in the Celsus Library of Ephesus.So I could live this city more intensively
and breathe in her atmosphere all day long,through that a more careful
observation and interaction happened.

Finally I was taken to the orbit of Ephesus.

When I was drawing the marble stones,my mind was taking me to a fictional
allegory,so that Ephesus became a passion for me,which has led me into the depths
of the ancient world..Even after the exhibition I used to go to the ancient city, to feel
the mystery of the stones again and again.

As if the remaining of the events in the past were representing the wisdom,after
having buried its sins in the history they were still resistent against the modern
times and purified themselves by always gleaming and reflecting sun shines.

Today's people were able there to feel the taste of friendship,love and peace
once again.As if Ephesus were the symbol of love and peace..
The cheerful laughters of happy people were allways rising there.

I was thinking about what the reasons of the purity,the warmth and lovefullness of
today's Ephesus might be?...

Were the sorrows of the slaves terminated?

The class differences,the houses of the richs and poors...

The wars,the gladiators,

The brothel on the other side of the Celsus Library,
The signs for the way to the brothel on the marble road,

The public toilettes,where men were sitting and chating all together,

The theather,the fountains,the temples,the stadium,the gymnasium,

Amazons,Kybele,Artemis,Hadrian,Domitian,Ionians and Heraclitus,

The sculptures,
and the ancient motives,exciting coloumns,
were all carved into marble stones with much labors and emotions.

What was the mysterious power,which annules the badness
and calls to the beauties?...

That is the ART which is real and eternal:

A silent scream,a light which is the reflecting towards the human
who has been blowed up,suffocated and alienated within
The chaos of modernism...


So,ýt has began to be a formation Of 'EPHESUS PAINTINGS'in this way,in my works.

These canvases are not being painted in order to illustrate Ephesus..

Here, EPHESUS is just a symbol,a power which is to start action into

the internal walk by the colours and the forms...

It may be a search for 'a visual symphony', after these dense interactions ,

or a PLAY between the past and the future...

Sevgi Ürüm, 31.October.2005,On the exhibition of Sevgi Ürüm , titled 'Ephesus Paintings'