Maryam Turkey
Artworks
Drawing inspiration from her childhood in Baghdad, where mud structures bore the imprint of human touch, this immersive work echoes the architectural imperfections and textures that fascinated the artist as a child. Facilitating tactile interactions through its textured surfaces and intricate puzzle-like form, the artwork serves as a juxtaposition to the prevailing tide of mechanized construction and architectural rigidity. Eliciting a palpable sense of play, Deconstructed embodies a timeless narrative, celebrating the enduring connection between humanity and its architectural creations amidst an evolving world dominated by technology.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Maryam Turkey (1994) is an Iraqi-American artist and designer based in Brooklyn, New York. In 2009, she moved with her family as refugees to the United States, where she attended Baltimore School for the Arts high school and learned traditional painting. She continued her art and design education at Pratt Institute, where she earned her Bachelor of Industrial Design in 2017. Shortly after graduation, Turkey was awarded an art residency at Domaine de Boisbuchet where she was mentored by Sabine Marcelis. Turkey’s sculptural practice began then. In 2019 she was awarded an art residency at the Museum of Art and Design, where she developed her ongoing paper clay techniques. A number of other esteemed residencies followed, including the Silver Arts Residency at the World Trade Center and the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council (LMCC) residency at Governor’s Island (both in New York). In 2021, Turkey was included in Next Gen: Stories from the New World, a new talent exhibition at Carpenter’s Workshop Gallery in New York, where she presented her autobiographical series “Between Rise and Fall.” Turkey has been featured in Architectural Digest as “one to watch,” as well as Surface Magazine, Galerie Magazine, Interior Magazine, and The Wall Street Journal. Her latest group show participation was at Malin Gallery’s “Anthem X” presentation at Art Basel in 2022. Her first solo show, “Walls,” took place at Java Project (Brooklyn) in January 2023. Turkey was recently granted the For Freedoms 2023 annual fellowship, supporting artists with a focus on social change.