‘Overworked’: Çağla Ulusoy in conversation with ArtReview
6 June, 4.30 – 5.30pm
Dirimart London
RSVP to london@dirimart.com
Join ArtReview at Dirimart’s London gallery for a conversation between Çağla Ulusoy and ArtReview editor Fi Churchman about the artist’s book Overworked, which features her abstract paintings accompanied by collages that reflect the processes behind her practice. In her paintings, which are distinguished by her unique visual language and colour palette, Ulusoy reshapes lived experiences from various cultures and traditions in an abstract style, infusing them with subconscious memories and imagery. Her collages, on the other hand, reimagine her works within a hybrid narrative and fantastical universe, incorporating adorned figures and scenes. Comprising 83 selected paintings – which Ulusoy creates with materials including acrylic, oil paint, sand and wax and in which harmony and friction coexist on the same surface and the balance between colour and form is constantly challenged – and the collages accompanying them, the book deciphers the artist’s multilayered and uncanny visual language.
The conversation coincides with Colour is the Place, a group exhibition presenting Ulusoy’s work alongside that of Hashel Al Lamki, Tala Worrell and Berke Yazıcıoğlu, on view from 4 June–18 July 2026
Dirimart London
23 Princes St
London W1B 2LX
About Dirimart
Founded in 2002 by Hazer Özil with the intent of exhibiting established and emerging artists both from Turkey and around the world in a context conducive to critical dialogue and cross-pollination, the pivotal concern of the gallery’s program is individual and regional differences while fostering cosmopolitanism and collaboration.
Dirimart cultivates a program premised on conceptualism, political resistance and intellectual rigour. Located in three distinct locations; Dolapdere and Pera in Istanbul, and Mayfair in London, the gallery divides its program between established artists, such as Ayşe Erkmen, İnci Eviner, Canan Tolon, Nuri Bilge Ceylan, Sarah Morris, Anselm Reyle, Jorinde Voigt, Tomokazu Matsuyama, and Karin Kneffel and emerging artists, such as Çiğdem Aky, Çağla Ulusoy, Berke Yazıcıoğlu, and Ebru Duruman. The gallery, through Dirimart and RES Publications (est. 2007), also continues its well-established series of catalogues, artist books and books on art theory.
About Çağla Ulusoy
Çağla Ulusoy’s (b. 1989, Istanbul) practice is a dynamic process in which the artist integrates her life experiences across different cultures and traditions. In her works, Ulusoy reshapes subconscious memories and images, processing the traces of these cultures through an abstract visual language. With an approach that transcends boundaries, the artist blends these influences to create hybrid meanings. In her abstract and complex compositions, she establishes a rich aesthetic dialogue between cultural conflicts and the imprints of the past. The layers of colour and texture that Ulusoy builds on canvas – using various materials such as acrylic, oil paint, sand, and wax – play a significant role in conveying the uncertainty of space and time while also serving as a powerful form of aesthetic and sensual expression. Continuously challenging the balance between colour and form, the artist deepens the visual impact of her works, allowing harmony and friction to coexist on the same surface. Viewing each painting as a living entity, she remains in constant dialogue with her works, enabling each piece to develop its own identity and embracing improvisation in the process. For Çağla Ulusoy, each work is a process of spontaneous evolution – planning or repetition runs counter to her artistic approach.
Ulusoy moved to New York in 2013 to take courses at the Art Students League of New York. There, she met American artist Pat Lipsky, one of the pioneering artists in the Color Field movement in New York, who mentored her for two years. She had the opportunity to learn and work under her guidance, which allowed her to develop her technique. In 2018, she completed her Master’s degree in the Painting Department at the Royal College of Art, London. Her solo exhibitions include GARDENSCAPES, Dirimart Dolapdere, Istanbul (2025) and SANDYMANSIONAL, Dirimart Pera, Istanbul (2023). Among the group exhibitions are in Le citron est la fleur la plus sincere (curated by Yvannoé Kruger), Galerie Les filles du calvaire, Paris (2023); Şey: nesnenin ihtimali, Odeabank, İstanbul (2020); LovelyHeavyLovelyH…, Biscuit Factory, London (2019); Salad Days (online exhibition), Young Space (2019); Layover, Versus Art Project, Istanbul (2018); Mantra, StourSpace, London (2018); Royal College of Art Degree Show, London (2018); Thumbnails, Hockney Gallery, London (2018); Red Dot Annual Exhibition, Phyllis Harriman Mason Gallery, New York (2016) and BHQFU Brucennial, New York (2014). Çağla Ulusoy lives and works in Istanbul.
