About Us
Biography of Gülsüme Oğuz
Gülsüme Oğuz is a ceramic artist and clinical psychologist whose practice integrates art therapy with human rights activism. Her work, grounded in a Master’s degree in Clinical Psychology from Istanbul Bilgi University and specialized Art Psychotherapy training at the Istanbul University Faculty of Medicine, functions as a clinical and artistic bridge supporting psychological resilience. For many years, she has conducted therapeutic work for survivors of war and torture within the Human Rights Foundation of Turkey (HRFT/TİHV) and is a founding board member of the Art Psychotherapies Association in Turkey.
Oğuz’s practice is deeply informed by her field experience between 2014 and 2016 in refugee camps, where she worked with Yazidi and Rojava survivors of ISIS. Focusing specifically on the recovery of women and children, these encounters provided her with unique insights into the somatic memory of trauma. In the Silopi and Viranşehir camps, she supported women experiencing severe post-traumatic dissociation and organized art therapy groups for orphaned children.
Between 2015 and 2016, at the Diyarbakır/Fidanlık Refugee Camp, Oğuz provided psychotherapy for Yazidi women and adolescent girls. Furthermore, she volunteered in the critical process of receiving women rescued from ISIS captivity at the border, playing an active role in documenting torture testimonies, supporting forensic medical examinations, and coordinating safe transitions to UN representatives.
Her flagship project, Hero’s Eternal Exile, is a “migratory exhibition” born from these field observations, transforming the ceramic process into a medium for “somatic witnessing.” In her work, she explores human reparative power against the destructiveness of war through the metaphor of the “female breast”—a symbol of life and compassion. Through ceramic forms, the artist aims to establish a restorative bond between a life fragmented by trauma and the process of reconstruction.
ARTIST STATEMENT
At the dawn of human history, earth and man were one. God created man from the earth. The first humans, in turn, crafted palm-sized icons from fired clay and whispered their fears and wishes into these forms. Then, they turned their palms toward the sky and continued their prayers. However, while the modern world has reduced earth to a mere raw material for tiles, it has also trapped humanity between concrete walls. My artistic practice is an attempt to break free from these concrete walls of modern life and return to the essence of the earth and to our first whispers.
As a ceramic artist and clinical psychologist, I view the earth not just as a raw material, but as a realm where emotions are processed and healed. Using an expressionist approach, I hand-build various types of clay, allowing the form to find its own path. By keeping the use of glaze to a minimum, I highlight the natural, raw, and honest texture of the earth. I use the firing process not as a finality, but as an integral part of the shaping process.
For me, the production of ceramics is the story of the human being who, despite being wounded, does not lose the power to create and continues to add value to life. Every form I create, just like those first icons, represents my belief that a person can give birth to themselves anew by drawing strength from their own essence.
Awards and Recognition
2018
Certificate of Appreciation, Istanbul University, Istanbul Faculty of Medicine
2018
Certificate of Appreciation, Istanbul University, Istanbul Faculty of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, Art Psychotherapy and Rehabilitation Program
2025
Certificate of Appreciation, Silopi Municipality, Şırnak
2025
Commemorative Plaque, Silopi Municipality, Şırnak