a lament… December 2021
to grieve our fractured relationship with the natural world… I played with sticks, leaves, and seeds that I gathered over the course of 3 years for this group of art work.  As an artist I wanted to be the vessel, not the subject. As I cut, painted, made mold and felted my collection, I tried to hear, I tried to see beyond. I think it goes like the famous song by Joni Mitchell:
…Don't it always seem to go,
That you don't know what you've got till it's gone…
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“They took all the trees, and put them in a tree museum,
And they charged the people a dollar and a half to see them” 
Ficus lyrata leaves,handmade paper,plaster mold and monoprint on tracing paper assemblage
“A Summer Under Pirnal Tree”
A summer with wild fires in Bodrum, Turkey
Mediterrannean Holly Oak (Quercus ilex) acorns, monoprint on balsa wood
 Quercus ilex, holly oak is a hardy evergreen that has been part of Mediterranean landscape for thousands of years. Now it has a small presence in the arid, naked hills of Bodrum Mugla, Turkey.  Its future is uncertain with prolonged drought and wild fires. (In July and August 2021, a series of more than two hundred wildfires burnt 42,000 acres of forest in Turkey's Mediterranean Region in the worst-ever wildfire season in the country's history.)​
“Pains of Being Pure at Heart"
Diorama,maple samaras, gilded
Picture
"They weren't given time to flower once more." wool and branch, 2024 Inspired by Shin Yu Pai's poem "Saving Time"

 A LAMENT- continues 2024
TO GRIEVE OUR FRACTURED RELATIONSHIP WITH THE NATURAL WORLD
NOVEMBER 7 - DECEMBER 2
ZEYNEP BANU ALEV & CLAUDIA ZIMMERMAN

I was one of those kids who could spend an entire afternoon watching an ant hill. Not much has changed in regard to my natural tendencies toward little pastoral adventures; though fear took over my enjoyment.This is the second show in this series. I am very proud to be partnering with Claudia Zimmerman to show my new pieces in “A Lament “ series.
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Artist Statement:
Resident artist, Zeynep Banu Alev and guest artist, Claudia Zimmerman examine the interaction of humans with nature. Zeynep explores this concept as she plays with sticks, leaves and seeds gathered over the years to create this body of work. Claudia uses allegory in her oil paintings to reveal hidden messages about human nature. For Zeynep and Claudia, it is a matter of trying to hear, trying to listen and taking note when nature reveals her stories.

The idea that we have changed the planet so dramatically isn't new, but it has entered a new, distinctive phase in its history. The Anthropocene is a term that is increasingly used to define a new planetary era, one in which humans have become the dominant force shaping Earth's bio-geophysical composition and processes. This tiny segment of Earth's timeline signifies a period where human activity has considerably altered the planet's climate and ecosystems, caused mass extinctions of plant and animal species, among other lasting impacts starting around the Agricultural Revolution, ramping up with the Industrial Revolution and the current state of climate impact. "Although there have been mass extinction events in Earth's history, until now, they have all been triggered by natural causes. This is the first time a single species has caused such destructive effects on the natural world and had an awareness of doing so.