Elif Saydam

Elif Saydam (*1985, Calgary, Canada) is dedicated to an expanded painting practice that incorporates elements of ornamentation and decoration, humor and socio-political critique to explore systems of social hierarchies and textures of everyday urban existence. Among the works are canvases colored with wax, patchwork of different painted fabrics, paintings on sponges, cabin doors or security mirrors. Saydam draws on traditions such as miniature painting and illuminated manuscripts, while at the same time focusing on contemporary locations in big cities such as petrol stations, late-night shops and apartment blocks. Places where precarious population groups encounter gentrifying forces and where dynamic areas of resistance against the homogenization of cities emerge.

The works by Elif Saydam are part of numerous international collections, such as Musée d'art contemporain de Montréal, Montréal; RBC Corporate Art Collection, Canada; Yan Du Collection, London; The Federal Collection of Contemporary Art Germany, Bonn; Neuer Berliner Kunstverein Artothek, Berlin.