Sera Ilel
Constellation II
Porcelain Wall Panels
60×60 cm x 2 sets
Sera was born in 1965 in Istanbul, Turkey and lived in Boston, USA and Germany. She currently lives and works in Istanbul. The artist studied in Saint Michel French High School in 1984 and Istanbul University in 1989, where she graduated with a B.A. in Business Administration degree.
Sera Ilel’s porcelain paintings offer an innovative approach to various traditional practices.
In 2008 Sera participated in various exhibitions in Istanbul and in 2014 she took part in the “Artistas Sefardites des d’Istanbul a Barcelona” exhibition. In 2018 she also participated in “1492: Göke” Exhibition organised by Yunus Emre Institute in London.
Within her twenty years of experience with porcelain painting, she has created a range of series that combine traditional and modern stylistic techniques, showcased at various exhibitions and arts and crafts bazaars.
The artist has performed many different types of ceramic artworks. Among her artworks, The Caftan Series are series of plates featuring ornate caftans with gold ornamentation inspired by Ilel’s travels to Hong Kong where she first observed Japanese kimono designs on porcelain vases. Besides, inspired by her love of the sea, in her Casual Fish Series she uses a blue palette and paints primarily aquatic subjects such as sails, seagulls and fishes in deep water.
In this exhibition the artist will expose her different ceramic work series which is Constellations Series. It is an installation of hand cast and hand painted three dimensional porcelain tiles.
Using a myriad of familiar motifs from her cultural heritage, Ilel paints an image of conversation, evolution, and deconstruction, giving global heritage a new expression. Her other series of ceramic works are The Golden Fish Series, The Caftan Series and the İznik Origami Series.
Sera is a marvellous ceramic artist who meticulously and successfully uses all the materials to create her beautiful and playful artworks.
Collective Art Exhibition of Turkish Sephardic Artists ”Traces of a Multicultural Heritage”
Created by Yunus Emre Enstitüsü Deutsch.