Wild Clay

How Marga Karayol Uses Sculptural Forms To Connect To The Ancient Landscape

Marga Karayol in conversation with Elizabeth Fleur Willis Clay Sculptures & Photography by Marga Karayol

Marga Karayol is an interdisciplinary artist living between the mountains and the sea in southwestern Turkey. A self-proclaimed tactile expressionist, she works primarily with fired and unfired wild clay as a way to experiment with sculptural forms and connect to the ancient landscape that inspires her:

Craving a tactile medium to work with, clay found me. For years, I avoided working with clay out of ignorance. I couldn’t get past thinking of ordinary, mundane objects that I felt lacked imagination so I was turned off. It wasn’t until recently that my attitude towards clay changed when I decided to collect and experiment with it, gathering it by hand from the body of the earth, realizing clay is alive! It radiates energies, old and new, it holds memory, stories of long ago, bits and bones. My intentions are not to make objects that are necessarily defined as ceramics or sculptures but rather to explore and experiment with clay. To let the clay guide me, shaping forms intuitively by tuning in through touch. By emphasizing movement and gesture, I aspire to illuminate the magic that lives within the clay.

Elizabeth Fleur Willis: You speak about the ephemeral and tactile nature of your practice, could you tell us what ‘Tactile Expressionism’ is?

Marga Karayol: It means to be able to create pieces that I can physically show in an exhibition and invite people to touch them. My work is allowed to be touched, unlike in the normal gallery setting in which this is prohibited. I think this increases the experience and allows people to connect with the material, to touch what you, the artist, has formed/ touched, but also to leave their own imprint on what my creation. For me, being tactile is meditative, I like to touch things, to get dirty, to connect with the earth. I’m making ephemeral works because it's spontaneous, it goes with however I’m feeling in the moment. Regardless of the pieces, or locations in which I create, I leave my work behind so that it becomes part of the landscape and goes back into the earth - this way, nothing is gained and nothing is lost, and most importantly, nothing is wasted.

I think it's important for artists to consider a more sustainable approach to art-making so we generate less or zero waste and be conscious of the types of materials we use because, where does it all go? Working with Wild Clay is a way for me to connect with nature and to the landscape, while at the same time giving back what I take from the earth, rather than filling my house with ceramics. This is a way of living in the moment, being present and letting go. Documenting my work acts as their own footprint. Sometimes I will return to my work and re-photograph them over time, noticing the changes along the way; what will they look like after the rain has washed over them? What will they look like a year later? Returning and documenting/ watching the slow shift and decay is important to my work.

EFW: How do you emotionally connect with the ephemeral ‘let go’ works versus the permanent objects that you choose to keep?

MK: It depends, I don’t set out and think to myself ‘’today I will make an ephemeral work’’ or ‘’today I’ll make a wood-fired work.’’ It just naturally happens depending on if I like a work and decide I want to make it more permanent. However I have made ephemeral works that I’ve really loved - but letting go is a part of life, and making ephemeral work keeps me humble. Keeping too many of my created objects isn’t something I desire, so it fuels my work to become ever more ephemeral. My wild clay sculptures live, breathe, and are now able to return back to the earth.

EFW: Could we compare this process to the cycle of a tree? Sprouting, growing, dropping leaves which become mulch and feed the tree…?

MK: Exactly. Wild clay is in a natural state, then becomes a sculpture through my hands, but ultimately when left in its own habitat, will return to its natural state, and so add a new layer to the existing landscape. Actually it’s similar to the nature of the earth as a whole, ever-shifting, ever-changing. This clay that the earth produces is part of that constant shift. The exciting thing is that it can be found anywhere, by anyone! You can find it in your own backyard or in the forest and it is a free material with so many varying colours, textures and qualities. Some feel a little more like plastic, some very muddy... it depends. These are all the things I’ve learnt through experimenting and exploring. To me, it’s a very practice-based process. I never get bored because I’m constantly exploring!

EFW: What inspires the shapes of the sculptures?

MK: The landscape where I live definitely resonates with the objects I make. I am inspired by movements and forms found in nature: the twists and turns of mountains, the shapes of waves, the bodies of caves. Every object I make has gesture and movement so working with wild clay can be very temperamental to work with: it can crack or fall which can be frustrating and yet, I always go with the flow. I am also inspired by ancient ceramics, archaeology and primitive clay made objects. Definitely Eva Hesse, Ana Mendieta and Valentine Schlegel. Living artists include Kiki Smith, Alex Branch, Simone Bodmer-Turner, Heidi Gustafson, Karen Miranda Abel, Taryn Tomasello, Elissa Osterland and Alisha Wessler.

EFW: To me it seems that by your act of excavating this clay, you’re taking these atoms of history that exist within this soil, broken down over thousands of years and bringing to it new life.

MK: Yes! I'm so excited that you said that. One day I discovered an old ceramic urn/ pot, in the same spot where I usually source my clay from, all broken up into pieces. I didn’t move it, I just marvelled at it! It was so fascinating and reminded me that this land is full of treasure. Being able to work with clay that has been around for generations, ancient civilisations, mixing with energies of the past, the winds, the rains, the storms, the earthquakes; all of it comes together in this clay to create an incredible energy which is very inspiring. I want to know what intrigued people to start making clay sculptures in the first place three thousand years ago! Written language didn’t exist and yet people were creating these totems and statues... I wonder how that came about? Everything began with the earth. Art came from the earth. For example, the earth provided pigments and our human instinct was to use the earth to create! We walk on it every single day and don’t consider the richness of what we have beneath our feet. I feel grateful to live where I do and be able to explore the land, to really spend time connecting with it! I really dig deep with my practice here!

Being able to work with clay that has been around for generations, ancient civilisations, mixing with energies of the past, the winds, the rains, the storms, the earthquakes; all of it comes together in this clay to create an incredible energy which is very inspiring

“EFW: Literally and metaphorically ‘dig deep’?

MK: Haha, right! Totally.

EFW: What artists inspire you?

MK: Definitely Eva Hesse, Ana Mendieta and Valentine Schlegel. Living artists include Kiki Smith, Alex Branch, Simone BodmerTurner, Heidi Gustafson, Karen Miranda Abel, Taryn Tomasello, Elissa Osterland and Alisha Wessler.

EFW: What advice do you have to artists who wish to be more connected with the earth?

MK: I highly encourage people to explore the world around them. Go to a forest and see what you can find, get down on the ground and take time to really look at the space, be a part of it rather than just taking a stroll. Really spend time looking, observing, touching. Become familiar with what is growing around you. Immerse yourself in water or spend time near water. Take your studio outside. Finding a place in nature that you can visit regularly will energize you and refresh your mind. Experimentation is important too, let yourself explore, try not to be set on a fixed goal and instead just go with the flow.

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