Review by Heidi Trautmann…….
Art exhibition – Nilgün Güney Art Studio Group in connection with drug addiction in the TRNC
Nilgün Güney and her studio art group are always mindful to follow social tendencies, social problems, also after-effects of political decisions which they feel is the duty of an artist and which is also my own belief. We have to raise our hands and bring awareness to people in a visionary way.
The exhibition which was opened on June 21 at the Ismet Güney Art Centre (Nilgün’s father by the way, first Turkish Cypriot artist and teacher in the TRNC, i.e. in modern arts). Prime Minister Hüseyin Özgürgün had the pleasure to open the exhibition and with him were the president of the local Drug Prevention Committee (Uyuşturucuyla Mücadele Komisyonu) Mr. Hasan Karaokçu and psychologist Mr. Teyfide and also the 2nd president of the commission Ms Yeşim Gürçınar. The committee is connected directly to the Presidency. I was promised by Yeşim Gürçınar some more information regarding the current drug situation which she called very bad; schools and universities are cross roads for drug trafficking on an international basis.
Nilgün Güney took the guests around the two halls to explain the art work done by Nilgün herself, Ateş Kozal (video installation), Aydan Lisaniler, Eda Gökçe, Pervin Öznergiz, Saadet Alpar, Zeynep Uzun, all very thought provoking.
The event makes part of the International Day of Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking on June 26, 2016. More should be done to this effect. Thank you to Nilgün and her art group for taking on this problematic theme. According to people I spoke to during the exhibition, children from the age of ten years are approached in front of schools to buy drugs and consequently become ‘hooked’ on them. It is so sad that not enough is done to protect children and young people from this peril.
