"For me, art is a way of life, a way of expressing myself" • Nesibe Biçici

"The most important feature of a hyperrealist artist is to see correctly and to know how to look," says Nesibe Biçici, an artist from Turkey whose work on Instagram caught our eyes.

Her drawings will take your breath away. The way that Nesibe works might seem time-consuming, but the results are totally worth it.

Do you remember your beginnings in the visual arts?

Yes, I remember. My adventure started at the age of three, starting to paint. At a young age, I would always motivate myself by drawing pictures and it was the only activity I spent time with. Later, in primary school, my math and English teachers discovered that I was very interested and talented in painting.

This is the painting that I won first place in the painting competition at the primary school with.

I remember I wanted to draw everyone around me, even the guests who came to our house. I had an introverted childhood and drawing the objects, people and plants was the biggest source of entertainment for me.

Did you study at an art school or did you develop your talent on your own?

Although my studies started at a very young age, I actually learned professional techniques and methods in Fine Arts High School. When I was in high school, I used to regularly attend exhibitions twice a year. Although I went to Fine Arts High School, I actually owe the development of my talent to my own studies. I did many studies and I dedicated myself to discovering myself at that time by trying different things.

Nesibe, you work as an art teacher, can you tell us what exactly you teach?

Yes, I give private lessons as an art teacher. The thing I taught each of my students at first was colors. Because I think this is the most basic thing to know in order to see the details in the picture correctly. Sometimes I think that if I want to draw things that I see beautiful while walking outside, I ask myself how I can get the most accurate result by mixing which colors. It is very important to get used to it. In addition, I teach perspective, measure, light, balance, shadow, composition. Apart from this, my other responsibility is to organize the curriculum according to the age, skill level and development dynamics of my students and to encourage my students to research, think and produce.

Is art more of a job or a hobby for you?

For me, art is a way of life, a way of expressing myself, a job and hobby that I will not want to give up for a lifetime. To give an example, just as the skin covering the skeleton makes us look beautiful and different from everyone else, it means the skin on that skeleton for me in a life intertwined with art. As a result, although all people have skeletal structures, what makes them special and beautiful is the skin that covers their body, but no one lives in the consciousness of this aesthetic. This is art for me. That's why the value and meaning of art is very important to me and it is a feeling that is very difficult to describe.

How long have you been involved in hyperrealism and why did you choose this particular artistic direction?

I think that an artist must first understand concreteness in order to paint abstractly, so realism has always attracted my attention and I have been working in this way for the last few years.

What do you think is the most important skill for an artist creating hyper realistic paintings?

In my opinion, the most important feature of a hyperrealist artist is to see correctly and to know how to look, seeing colors and details correctly and conveying them as they are makes the painting realistic.

Do you have a favourite hyperrealist artist who is a role model for you?

I follow Turkish painter Taner Ceylan with admiration, his unique style and hyperrealism paintings are quite remarkable. In oil painting works, I follow Bülent Bulduk with admiration. He uses the spatula technique very successfully. Finally, we should not forget Ms. Rükiye, who impressed me with her hyperrealist works. The details and subtleties in Rükiye Garip's watercolor works reflect hyperrealism very well.

On average, how many hours do you spend creating one of your pieces?

The time it takes to complete a work depends entirely on my mood, sometimes it takes 7 - 8 hours, sometimes it can take a few weeks.

What inspires you to create the most?

Travels are one of the things that inspire me the most in my original and original drawings. During my travels, I take pictures of the things I love around me and especially the old people, obsolete objects and historical places impress me. I use these photos later for drawing. In addition to these, what I watch and read in books can also inspire.

For example, on my last trip, the chains in front of a ruined building looked pretty good to me and I wanted to paint it in watercolor. Below is a photo of the drawing.

Do you have any favourite Koh-i-noor products that you would recommend to others?

As someone who has tried many charcoal brands, I recommend charcoal among Koh-i-noor products. It is quite satisfactory in terms of softness and darkness. It is sufficient for professional drawings. Apart from that, the pigment density of soft pastels seems quite good compared to many brands.

Do you prefer to create images of animals or do you prefer people?

It's a very difficult question for me to answer. I can say that if I'm going to do pencil drawing, I prefer to draw animals but if I'm going to draw people I like to draw them in color. It's all personal preference and thi is how I like to work.

And what do you think about abstract art? Have you ever tried to create this way?

Making abstract art is to spoil the things that are right for me. In order to disrupt this, we must first learn what is right, namely reality, and I am at the stage of learning everything right now. I haven't had much professional work in the field of abstract art, but I may try it in the future.

Drawing or painting?

I haven't decided which technique I like more, I'm in the process of finding myself by trying bigger techniques, but if I were to choose, I would choose oil paint. I love the oil painting effect. Since oil paint dries later than other paints, it gives me the opportunity to correct when I make a mistake, and trying to find the closest color to my drawing by mixing many colors gives me very good feelings.

Do you have a dream regarding art that you would like to fulfil?

I want to completely intertwine my life with art. I want to create some collections, open personal exhibitions and show people my works one by one. I dream of opening a large workshop in which I can make paintings and sculptures, and discovering potential talents in the field of art and reaching wider student masses.

Is it possible to see your paintings live somewhere?

I have some special collections for my customers in Turkey and especially abroad (US and UK). However, I do not have any work that is actively exhibited at the moment.

What are your plans for 2022?

I want to create a permanent style in my long-term goals. I try to discover which one I can be more successful in by trying different techniques in all my studies. Then I want to create an originality specific to that technique. Creating works that completely reflect me and producing more successful works are among the priority goals in my life.

Besides, I want to save some money and open a big workshop. Because of the lack of space, I cannot work in different fields and I do not have the necessary working environment for very large studies. For example, I want to make large sculptures or very large paintings.

We are keeping fingers crossed, thank you, Nesibe!