Goddess figure Çatalhöyük

In an earlier post, we wrote about the neolithic site Çatalhöyük and the beautiful mountain Hasan Dag. I was fascinated with the neolithic archeological site because of its significant finds and the contested interpretations between two key archeologists Mellaat and Hodder

Mellart after his initial excavations 1958 had concluded that the society at Çatalhöyük had a matriarchal religion, based on the many Goddess figurines. Hodder later disputed this, arguing in 2005 that there many different types of figurines. He states:

We’ve now started working there since the mid 1990s and come up with very different ideas about the site. One of the most obvious examples of that is that Çatalhöyük is perhaps best known for the idea of the mother goddess. But our work more recently has tended to show that in fact there is very little evidence of a mother goddess and very little evidence of some sort of female-based matriarchy. That’s just one of the many myths that the modern scientific work is undermining. (O’Brien, Jeremy New techniques undermine ‘mother goddess’ role in the community Irish Times September 20, 2009)

Anyway, back to the story of our adventure in Cappadocia and Anatolia.

We rented a car with the intent of staying in the Cappadocia region. While we were visiting the stunning Ihlara Valley we looked on the map and saw Çatalhöyük. It was located on the map close to Konya, which did not seem a long way. Also, from what we remembered Konya seemed a pretty small town. So we were up for an Anatolian spur of the moment adventure.

When we got on the highway we realised Konya was almost 200kms away but we figured it wasn’t that far to go to visit such an amazing place.

After several hours of Marty driving into the afternoon sun we drove into Konya. We quickly noticed this was a city of 1.3 million people, not the sleepy town we remembered. The roads were pretty tricky, lanes converging with no indication from other drivers most of the time. Donkeys with loads of lemons or grapes in the middle of an urban environment with the main roads as vectors leading to other key urban centres.

Marty was a champion driving through the evening traffic. We did a couple of loops almost to suburbia and decided to stop at the first sign of a hotel. After quite a while of driving around we found this very ritzy looking place with lots of sparkling lights cascading from the first floor balcony.

Like many of the hotels in Turkey the entrance had lots of marble – it is dug out of the ground in Turkey and in abundance. We were a bit concerned about the cost but rationised that we hadn’t burnt the plastic too much. Anyway, for the princely sum of 170 lira (about 85AUD) we had an awesome room on the first floor (not really my ideal but very clean and comfortable, with WiFi) and breakfast included.

After cross referencing several maps and google we were very happy to find that we were on the right road, in the right direction to Çatalhöyük, with the exception of one roundabout.

When we arrived at Çatalhöyük, we were a bit surprised that we were the only people there with the exception of the guardian of the site. Çatalhöyük is only excavated in the northern summer months of June and July.

The excavation site at Çatalhöyük

It was incredible to visit this site and really special that we had it almost to ourselves. On our next trip to Turkey we hope that we can perhaps do some volunteering at this amazing place. Check out the Çatalhöyük website.

See more of our pics on flickr.

The excavation site at Çatalhöyük

During the artist residency at the Babayan Culture House we had the fortune to meet an extremely warm and and interesting man called Mehmet Caliskan. Mehmet runs the Babayan Evi Cave Boutique Hotel , not to be confused with the Babayan Culture House as was the case when we arrived in the beautiful rural community of Ibrahimpaşa in Cappacocia.

After our initial arrival at the village square late in the evening we were totally disoriented and had no idea where we were supposed to go. We told the shuttle bus driver that we were not going to pay the fare until we knew where we were supposed to go. Luckily, after explaining that we were expecting someone from the Babayan Culture House to meet us, the owner of the corner store (Kuş Mehmet, another lovely man) rang the Babayan Evi Hotel, and shortly later we were met by Mehmet Caliskan.

After figuring out that we were staying at the Babayan Culture House and not his Hotel, Mehmet  escorted us to the where we were staying and even insisted on helping us with our luggage. He also invited us to visit him at his Hotel for some tea.

Over the course of our stay we ended up visiting the hotel several times for afternoon tea and dinner. Not only did he prove to be a gracious host he is also an excellent chef, a movie actor, and historian

Pearl Room, Babayan Evi Hotel

Mehmet runs the hotel almost single handedly with some help from his brother Fazlı and the cleaning lady. There are eight rooms with various configurations from twin share to family suite and all are beautifully decorated in gemstone themes.

The meal we shared was absolutely delicious, all prepared by Mehmet himself.  For starters we had yogurt soup followed by a fresh salad and bread, main course was a beautiful eggplant and lamb casserole cooked in a clay pot served with couscous.

During our discussions with Mehmet we discovered that he has a keen interest in the local history, especially the Greek connection with the area. He also turns out to be a movie actor, with a role as a priest in the soon to be released Ghost Rider 2.

Mehmet (left) and the Catholic priests in Ghost Rider 2

Mehmet the Catholic priest

And just about everywhere we went in Cappadoccia there was a photo of the locals with Nicolas Cage.

With Nicolas Cage

The experience has been akin to awakening from a dream, which is why this work is titled Oneiromancy. Also sleeping in a cave makes for bizarre and vivid dreams, which has influenced our understanding of this strange and amazing place.

Scalpland

This performance based work was initially presented as part of course work for Postgraduate Diploma at the University of Queensland, Department of Art History Visiting Scholar program in 1995. It was later presented at Volt:the new performance at the Institute of Modern Art, Brisbane in 1996.

In 1994, Tracey received an Individual Professional Development Grant from Arts Queensland to attend a summer school titled ‘Decolonising Knowledge’ which aided her development in regard to the conceptual content she explores in her work.

Scalpland was developed from this research, utilising the body and the notion of the landscape as exchangeable metaphors signifying colony.

Documentation - Scalpland

Overview

The key areas of consideration were:

1. To explore the contemporary implications of Australia’s colonial (myth)story as exemplified by the reality of the urban sprawl.

2. To subtly reference Australia’s colonial past as a penal colony as one of the various discursive operations surrounding the act clippering of my hair.

3. To deal contextually and physically with the colonisation of the body and mind with specific reference to the female body.

4. To use the pseudoscience of Phrenology as the colonial model to challenge the authority of such modalities of thought.

5. To specifically address Paul Carter’s discussions on mimesis, and blindness via the performative aspect of the presentation.

6. To present the performance as an anti-performance or anti-theatre. The ways that physically present these issues are crucial to my statement regarding colonisation.

7. To unify all aspects of this piece, not as a clear demarcation, but rather to assure the relativity contextually via an overlapping of ideas and metaphors.

Sample of text

Section 1: Scalpland
Mowing – A suburban weekend ritual – Up and down – in neat, straight lines – A suburban expectation – When I mow the lawn, I make spirals – Starting from the tree trunk and slowly working out – This practice invites friendly criticisms from neighbours, who all own their share of the urban sprawl

Scalpland - documentation

I only rent, a nomad – When I was a kid, the end of the street turned into bush – We lost hours there – As an adult, I returned to that place – Now a new estate – Red brick structures on land totally cleared – Progress? Surely not – Why didn’t they leave some trees? Did they have to clear the surface so they may draw their new maps?

To find the analogy between mowing and clippering ones hair – is not too difficult – Both represent a clearing of the surface – Though one, (namely mowing) conforms, whereas the other, (a woman clippering her own hair off) deviates – Perhaps not so much now as then – It’s the ‘then’ that requires another look –

Hair – Woman’s crowning glory – A sign of her femininity, her feminine vanity – To be robbed of this was nothing less than total humiliation, or a sign of humility – In God’s service – Otherwise, a mark of denigration reserved for criminals, or hysterics

Defeminised – Androgynous – Neutered

Joan of Arc cut her own hair off – One of her crimes… They wanted to do it as part of her torture – They were too late – She defied convention – Neither a free flowing, haired whore, nor bound haired housewife

Now, today – how will I be colonised for this act? Perceived as degenerate, banal, trendy? Too bad – Your coding does not make me – Only makes me safe on your terms – “There are names for women like you.”

Described – Inscribed – Located – Mapped

This is am image from the set, which is quite lovely in its own right

Image from Flickr set

This work is an exploration of themes that relate to the notion of cultural strangers as well as a meditation on some of the humanitarian issues that are of concern back in Australia.

Constructed by collaged maps and found maps both of Turkey and of Australia, this work has been installed in outdoor and indoor locations around Ibrahimpasa.

Special thanks to Mehmet Ali for letting us photograph in his kilim hamam.

Adrift - multiple location installation

Adrift - multiple location installation

Adrift - multiple location installation

Adrift - multiple location installation

Adrift - multiple location installation

Adrift - multiple location installation

This work utilises QR Codes which can be read by smart phones to reveal a short story about some of the places we have been to in the Cappadocia region. A QR code (abbreviated from Quick Response code) is a type of matrix barcode (or two-dimensional code) first designed for the automotive industry. More recently, the system has become popular outside of the industry due to its fast readability and comparatively large storage capacity. The code consists of black modules arranged in a square pattern on a white background. The information encoded can be made up of any kind of data (e.g., binary, alphanumeric, or Kanji symbols).

Here are some of the works

Avanos

Goreme

ibrahimpasa

Ortahisar

Where to find ‘em

The Big Fish
Cnr Pumicestone Rd & Bruce Hwy
Caboolture
QLD 4510 Ph (074) 95 6010

The Big Winch
Coober Pedy
SA 5723 Ph (08) 8672 5264

The Big Pink Buffalo Tourist Centre
Stuart Hwy, Darwin
NT 0800 Ph (08)8984 4493

The Big Sapphire
Anakie Rd, Gemfields
QLD 4702 Ph (079) 85 4525

The Big Rocking Horse
Birdwood Rd, Gumeracha
SA 5233 Ph (08) 8389 1085

The Big Wool Bales
230 Coleraine Rd, Hamilton
VIC 3300 Ph (055) 71 9177

The Big Berry
Gembrook Rd, Hoddles Creek
VIC 3139 Ph (059) 67 4413

The Big Galah
Eyre Hwy, Kimba
SA 5641 Ph (08) 8627 2112

The Big Opal
3 Mile Rd, Lightning Ridge
NSW 2834 Ph (068) 29 0247

The Big Camera
11 Dreyer St, Meckering
WA 6405 Ph (096) 25 1335

The Big Clock
Palmer Rd, Murray Bridge
SA 5253 Ph (08) 8532 4111

The Big Buzz Fun Park
The Lakes Wy, Rainbow Flat
NSW 2430 Ph (065) 53 6000

The Big Yabby
233 Warburton Hwy, Wandin North
VIC 3139 Ph (059) 64 4454

Big Apple Tourist Orchard
Avenue Of Honour, Bacchus Marsh
VIC 3340 Ph (03) 5367 4752

Giant Worm
Bass Hwy, Bass
VIC 3991 Ph (056) 78 2222

Big Merino
Cnr Hume Hwy & Lansdowne Sth, Goulburn
NSW 2580 (048) 21 8800

Dog On The Tucker Box
Hume Hwy, Gundagai
NSW 2722 Ph (069) 44 1450

Big Pineapple
Bruce Hwy, Nambour
QLD 4560 Ph (074) 42 1333

Big Banana Gear Shop
“Big Banana” Pacific Hwy, Coffs Harbour
NSW 2450 Ph (066) 51 5460

Please let us know if you have seen any other ‘Big’ tourist attractions – we would love to include them on our list

Griller Girls was the title of an exhibition featuring women artists working with technology, curated by Di Ball and exhibited at the Institute of Modern Art in 1999.

My work On-going bananas was a web based artwork featuring my cyber identity Carmen Banana.

It is ironic that at the time I talk about the falling commodity value of the banana, when in fact in 2001, the opposite is true because of severe crop damage after Cyclone Yasi and the floods in Queensland.

Carmen Banana

On-going bananas

as you will notice
this site is dedicated to an
unrepressed urge
to not only imitate a banana tree
but to also
celebrate the unique
yet universal mystery
of the humble banana.

the banana not only represents
health and well being-
it is often used
to symbolise the
exotic, sensual and indulgent elements
of desire…..

icon of tourism and trade
the banana
bends
to all manner
of
behavioural, environmental and social
conditions which
require consumption.

it is unfortunate that in recent times its value has fallen
due to the upsurge
of relentless
tactics which
represent
huge losses in moral, ethical and trade
relations

the banana is in crisis

grilled bananas
are particularly appetising,
and far more tasty than
the
battered alternative.

Portrait of Carmen Banana

Carmen Banana was one of the faces of Big Banana Time Inc. Carmen made her official debut in 1998 as a web based digital collage for Griller Girls – an exhibition of works by female new media artists curated by Di Ball for Volt-the new performance in 1998.
Carmen Banana has been inspired by a number of women bearing the same name. Carmen Miranda is of course the primary identity attached to this persona. The femme fatale character in Georges Bizet’s masterwork ‘Carmen’ is also a contributing influence. Bizet’s Carmen was, according to Germaine Greer (HQ magazine) a real person of gypsy heritage, who organised workers in a cigarette factory in Spain.

With Carmen Miranda in particular, there is a desire to play with such artificial constructions of feminine identity and experience of the world…..a return to childhood realms of the fantastic….nostalgia has many connections with childhood…..Within Carmen’s character there is a two fold interest – the process of representation inherent in the manifestation of nostalgia >its contrived production – and as a vehicle to ‘act out’ attitudes/behaviours/experiences through existing representations esp. about those aspects of myself which I find strange and hard to grapple with – the foreign part of myself.