Gezi Penguin

Gezi Penguin was a collaboration with my ex-partner, inspired by the Gezi Park protests in Istanbul. During the protests, while the rest of the world was watching what was happening in Istanbul, CNN Türk was famously broadcasting a previously scheduled documentary about penguins. The penguin quickly became a symbol of the protests, and images of penguins appeared everywhere in the street art and paste-ups that emerged around Gezi Park.

We adapted that imagery into our own penguin wearing a gas mask, taking inspiration from the distinctive street art and paste-up style of the protests. It became a piece of political art and social commentary, as well as a record of a very strange moment in the history of the protests.