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An Illustrated History of Sümerbank
9_Sümerbank_City.jpg
6_Sümerbank_Shop.jpg
5 Tailor Workshop.jpg
3 Nazilli Factory.jpg
8_Sümerbank_Home.jpg
2 Cotton Production.jpg
1_Sümerbank_Flag.jpg
IZKA/ Izmir University of Economics
Cankaya Municipality Cagdas Contemporary Art Centre, Ankara. 12/01 – 12/02/2018
Merinos Textile Factory Museum, Bursa, Turkey.
27/10- 13/11 2016
AASAM Izmir Municipality, Turkey.
14 – 27/10/2015
4 Rotary Printing Press.jpg
7 The Family.jpg

This exhibition was realised to correspond with the launch of the Turkish Digitial Archive, Tudita, and the Bir Ulusu Giydirmek: 1956-2000 Yılları Arası Sümerbank Desenleri Exhibition.

This series of illustrations aims to visually tell the story of the Sümerbank brand by capturing defining moments in the brands history.  The story begins with the Turkish map and flag composed in a patchwork of Sümerbank fabric swatches underlining the importance of the Sümerbank brand in the relation to the founding of the Turkish Republic. The production process is portrayed by the farming and processing of cotton, a depiction of the Sümerbank factory in Nazilli, and a representation of a rotary printing press. After the manufacture of the fabric, it was distributed in Sümerbank stores to tailors and housewives throughout the country who used the product to clothe their customers and families, and to decorate homes throughout Turkey. The final illustration in the series is a city entirely composed with Sümerbank fabric denoting the infiltration of the Sümerbank brand into all areas of life and society.

The illustrations were created using freehand line drawing to develop the initial sketches which were then coloured using digital techniques. The original fabric samples had discoloured over the years and are relatively small in size, therefore a process of cleaning, recolouring and reassembling the patterns was developed before applying to the final artwork. The illustrations were cut by hand and layered to give the final work a more 3 dimensional appearance.

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