#occupygezi Through Street-Art

Gezi Park, Istanbul. May 28, 2013. Referred to as the Occupy Gezi movement, it all started in Istanbul with the aim of preserving one of the few green areas left in the city; Gezi Park. According to the nation’s Prime Minister, this land would have been better suited for a shopping mall but for obvious reasons, many did not agree. Imagine cutting down Central Park in New York City to build a mall!! Culturally, Turkish people have a tenacious sense of dark humour and it even dominates the street art related to the Occupy Gezi movement. Below are some of the street art associated with #occupygezi and the images' cultural significances.

1. "The Defiant Penguin"

This penguin symbolizes the media corruption in Turkey as penguins are now associated with the self-censorship of the Turkish media. During the peak of the Gezi Park protests, CNN Turk chose to broadcast a documentary on penguins instead of providing any coverage of the ongoing civil protests!

The gas mask became an every day object for the protestors during Occupy Gezi, alluding to the immense amount of teargas that was used by the police force.

2. "Antarctica Resisting"

The use of dark humour is apparent in this version of the penguin symbolism as the family of penguins is unified with the caption below them reading “Antarctica Resisting”.

Antarctica undoubtedly has no affiliation with the nation or the Gezi protests, denoting the media’s broadcast of documentaries regarding penguins instead of the ongoing Occupy Gezi movement at the time.

3. "The Girl in Red" by Osman

This art was inspired by an actual photograph. In Osman’s depiction, the girl is visibly much larger than the police officer symbolizing the growth of the resistance as the movement progressed and the police violence increased.

4. "Grows as Sprayed"

Another rendering of Osman's work above, the public added the caption “Grows as Sprayed”. Turkish people use dark humour often and this is a good example of it.

The caption implies that the more violence the police shows, the larger the movement will grow.

5. "Whirling Dervish"

This was inspired by an individual who actually performed as a whirling dervish while wearing a gas mask in Taksim Square during the protests. Rumi's philosophies are a huge part of Turkish culture. The caption can be literally translated as “You Come Too” meaning “Come Nevertheless”. This a reference to Rumi's poem:

“Come, come again, whoever you are, come!

Heathen, fire worshipper or idolatrous, come!

Come even if you broke your penitence a hundred times,

Ours is the portal of hope, come as you are.”

This can be interpreted as a call to everyone regardless of identity, age, or socioeconomic class to come out and join the movement.

6. "Istanbul United"

Turks are fanatics when it comes to their beloved football teams. Istanbul has three major soccer teams; Galatasaray, Fenerbahçe, and Beşiktaş who are vigorous rivals.

This image is made up of objects representing an aspect of each team’s logo, all intertwined to make up one logo with the caption “Istanbul United since May 2013”.

The image was created by the fans themselves and further popularized by street artists across Istanbul reflecting the great solidarity of the people during #occupygezi.

7. "Twitter"

Twitter was labeled as an agitator and a dissenter by the Turkish Prime Minister and even banned at one point during Occupy Gezi. However, it was instrumental in distributing information for the protesters when the media was practicing self-censorship.

The artist depicts the bird as wearing a gas mask, which is again a reference to the colossal amount of teargas that was used by the police force.

8. "The Standing Man"

Referred to as the "standing man" ("duran adam" in Turkish), a man by the name of Erdem stood in Taksim Square without talking or moving for close to 8 hours. He became a symbol of the resistance and of peaceful protest. His image was used by street artists across Istanbul.

Many followed in his footsteps and a 'silent resistance' began with a call to the public to stand still for 5 minutes wherever they were, every day at 8pm. This was known across social media with the hashtag #duranadam.

9. "Be a Capulcu!"

The word "Capulcu" literally means "looter". The Prime Minister of Turkey referred to the peaceful protesters as capulcus which was very ironic since most of the protestors were well-educated citizens who were far removed from being looters.

But instead of reacting to this negatively, the protesters embraced the term and started referring to themselves as capulcus. Ironic in its nature, it again shows the wide use of dark humour in Turkish culture.

10. "Pepper Spray for Your Skin!"

This graffiti on the shutters of a MAC Cosmetics store states "Pepper spray beautifies the skin". Another product of the Turks' darm humour, it is not only referring to the immense use of pepper spray (and tear gas) by the police, but also showing the people's perseverance through it all.

Disclaimer: Pepper spray will NOT beautify your skin..!

11. "Just in Biber"

Last but not least, a clever and funny word play on Justin Bieber's name. The word "biber" in Turkish means "pepper", referring to the pepper spray and tear gas used by the police on the peaceful protesters.