Siviste - that's the village my father comes from in Sivas, Turkey. Nowadays it's called Günlüce. The original name is Greek from the time of Pontos.
Most of these items I rescued from the attic of my grandfather's old house. They were likely going to be used as firewood if I hadn't climbed up there. It's an agricultural village, so most of the items were for daily use in the kitchen. The kitchen was and still is the domain of women there, including my grandmother who had thirteen children. 13! What a number! She got married twice. In 1949, she left my grandfather and remarried. It was a strong decision for the time. After that, she had five more children. In her village (Kale, 2300m high), she was a sort of village leader. Guests and strangers were sent to her to decide where they would stay. She was consulted for village problems. In addition, she was a healer and laid hands on people. See also the copper sheet (shamanic). It's said to protect against evil omens and spirits. The colorful balls are made of animal bones. Even the colors have different meanings. In my opinion, while the Turks may have embraced Islam, they never truly lost their natural religion, shamanism.
My grandmother was a typical Anatolian woman who liked to give and be kind. Giving and kindness – serving the next one and sharing – are two fundamental characteristics of Anatolia.
This sculpture is therefore a very personal work that contains many more facets than I could mention above. I'm looking forward to our conversation even more!
