Artist in conversation: DILARA KOSELIOREN
Dilara Koselioren’s passion lies in representing the intangible through her artwork. Even before embarking on her formal art education and professional career, Dilara's intentions were always centered around capturing what words cannot express.
Her art captures the essence of unity, bridging the gap for those who may feel like they don't belong, and fostering a sense of connection with society as a whole. In the bustling metropolis of London, where millions coexist mere meters apart, there are countless walls, both physical and emotional. Dilara aims to shine a light on these daily life emotions and the profound impact that living in London has on us all.
Through her art, she invites viewers to explore their own emotional connection to the London lifestyle and discover something within her pieces that resonates with their own experiences. Dilara's work serves as a catalyst for meaningful connections, allowing people who visit her art to find solace, inspiration, and a shared understanding.
The Holy Art Gallery proudly showcased Dilara’s works in two of our digital shows, Art on Loop (November 2022 edition) and Utopia. Through those exhibitions her talent reached audiences in both London and Athens!
| Instagram |
What initially inspired you to become an artist, and how did you develop your unique style?
While I was studying at the University of Art London at the Interior Design Department. When we were representing our projects I realised I was using Digital and Graphics Art way more to express my ideas. More I got into Digital and Graphics Art the more I started using it to express my emotions. After graduating I realised the best career option for me was to focus on my art so that I can be free with what I do and express my emotions without any restrictions. Since I got my education for Interior Design even though I didn't do any Interior Design based jobs or projects I believe it had a great influence on my Digital and Graphics Art. I use a lot of architectural aspects and how living in a big metropolis affects our mental health and how we try to understand one and each other.
In terms of subject matter, what themes or motifs do you frequently explore in your work, and what draws you to these topics?
Studying Interior Design definitely made me think a lot about how we live as a society and how our living situations affect our mental health. While I'm so happy with studying different subjects and doing Digital and Graphics Art because it gave me a lot of different views. I believe one of the reasons I use a lot of architectural concepts is how I express my emotions regarding living in big metropols and trying to build empathy in my Art via Digital and Graphics Art.
Can you discuss a specific piece or project that challenged you as an artist, and how you overcome those challenges?
For me since I started my Professional Art Career every new project became new and challenging but the more I did projects and learned a lot about me and the Art Community I started to believe more in myself.
For example, one of my first Group Exhibition experiences was "Always Together – The Holy Art Gallery London – ‘Art on Loop’ Group Exhibition (14-18 November 2022)" which was super exciting for me even though it wasn't challenging regarding getting ready for the exhibition, it was really challenging for my emotions. After my first show my feelings and believing in myself got more stronger and prepared me for more bigger projects.
As for now one of my biggest projects yet is the London Design Festival which is an amazing experience for me. While getting ready for the London Design Festival I had to learn a lot about planning bigger scale exhibitions and also making sure my content is well received by the bigger scale of the public.
Always Together – The Holy Art Gallery London – ‘Art on Loop’ Group Exhibition (14-18 November 2022)
Who To Forgive – The Holy Art Gallery Athens – ‘Utopia’ Group Exhibition (16- 28 December 2022)
How do you stay connected with other artists and keep up with new developments and trends in the art world?
I believe networking is really important for every industry but especially the Art Community since art is based on social environments and human emotions. Definitely joining more exhibitions and Art Festivals really helped me a lot with connecting different Artists around the world and in London as well. Art is definitely about sharing not just with different Artists but with viewers as well. The more you share as an Artist, the more you learn about yourself and about your art. Each exhibition or Art Project is pushing you a step further and this will go like this in every Artist's life because just like life art is our journey as well and the more we grow so do our art as well.
When it comes to trends I try my best to not base my art for different trends. I believe trends come and go, however your art approach is way more important than art trends. However I know the importance of developments in the art world and the importance of keeping up with developments as an Artist. I try to differentiate between trends and developments. I always focus on how to improve myself and my art.
How do you incorporate feedback from critics and audiences into your artistic practice, and how do you balance this feedback with your own artistic intuition?
Without any feedback and critics not just as an Artist but as a human as well we can't improve ourselves. This does not mean as an Artist we have to change our art based on other people's views but ignoring or not listing feedback specially from the audience wouldn't help with our artistic practice.
I like to talk and communicate with different audiences and critics that have completely different opinions than me. This helps me a lot to see my art practice from outside. Making me think and pushing me to do better. However I don't really understand the point of talking about my emotional reflections. These points should be personal and in my view this is what makes an Artist is their emotions and how they reflect. Techniques can always improve and can be criticized but emotions should be personal up to Artist.
How do you stay motivated and inspired despite any setbacks or creative blocks you may encounter?
This is definitely related to how you see art and how you handle setbacks in your real life as well. Personally I'm really passionate about my art because it is one of my main points in life and I really enjoy chasing bigger projects and improving myself. But sometimes I'm rough on myself as well. This is something I'm working on. I'm always so appreciative of every project that I'm part of and learning to be less stressful but setbacks it and focusing on next projects. When It comes to creative blocks this happens to every Artist from time to time but I know this is not about my art but more about my own life and maybe stressful time I'm in so I always try to relax and focus on myself in those times.
How do you feel about exhibiting your artworks with The Holy Art Gallery?
I exhibited with The Holy Art Gallery 2 times and is always so dear to my heart because even though it was not so long ago, only over a year ago I was really beginning my art career compared to now. I was really excited when I first got accepted for Always Together – The Holy Art Gallery London – ‘Art on Loop’ Group Exhibition (14-18 November 2022). Being in part of the leading gallerie in London with lots of audience I remember how happy I was and gave me a lot of confidence to join other exhibitions. Secondly I applied to Who To Forgive – The Holy Art Gallery Athens – ‘Utopia’ Group Exhibition (16- 28 December 2022). Which was an amazing experience as well since it was my first Greece exhibition. I was so happy to represent my Digital and Graphics Art for the first time outside the UK which gave me way more courage to exhibit more internationally. I will always be so thankful for The Holy Art to give me opportunities to be part of amazing exhibitions and allow me to represent my art.
Looking ahead, what are your long-term goals and aspirations as an artist, and how do you plan to achieve them?
These past years have been amazing for me to learn and improve myself as an Artist specially with 2023 things started getting really more professional and more bigger exhibitions also pushing me to learn way more about my art and my emotional development. I'm so happy with all the exhibitions I have been part of and will be part of. I want to do more outdoor exhibitions or installations closer to the public and change people's mindsets about how art only belongs to galleries.
My main focus on my art has always been emotions and trying to bring different socio-economic societies together and building more empathy with my art. I will do my best as an Artist to always improve myself and making sure art is for everybody and not just one part of the society and belongs to all of us. I would like to thank The Holy Art Gallery team for this interview opportunity and being part of 2 incredible The Holy Art Gallery exhibitions. I would like to thank the viewers for taking time to read my interview and allowing me to share my journey as an Artist.