BY EYLÜL DOĞANAY (TRIN/III)
eylul.doganay@ug.bilkent.edu.tr
This week you’ll be accompanying me while I share another duo from my life: music and art, or how sound and rhythm go along with the creative process. To me, music has a greater power to make you feel alive than any of the other arts. I don’t deny the effect that cinema, or fiction, or painting, can have on people, yet at least to this point, I’ve been moved more by certain songs than by any other works of art. You can tell me that I haven’t seen the right movie yet, or read the right book, but I can just as well say that you haven’t heard the right song:). Having this much respect and love for what I listen to makes me literally want to put more stuff out there, not because I want to receive credit and congratulations, but because there’s always something I want to get off my chest. The drive here is the urge to see what what’s inside looks like when it’s outside, either in paint or in words.
Drawing
I don’t think I have the words to describe to you how soothing drawing is, with the genre of your choice playing in the background. It is definitely impossible to say what songs or melodies in particular give me good juju, and kind of act as my muse, as there are so many variables that might affect my mood at any given time. Where I am definitely matters; if I’m in a library or outside at a café with the sole purpose of passing time, then I can go for some classical music. This is the genre with which I’m least familiar, so I’ll name just one piece: “Nuvole Bianche” by Ludovico Einaudi. The piano truly helps to set your mind free, no matter how cheesy that sounds. At home, however, drawing on different materials or just sketching on my computer, things can go crazy: from “Brutal Love” by Green Day, to Turkish hits of the ’60s or ’70s – I can sync with literally anything.
My drawings on paper (or other surfaces) would probably be best described as psychedelic art, and contrary to what the name of this style might suggest as appropriate background music, I put on chillhop or some instrumental indie, really soft and easy sounds. These might include songs by EDEN, Angus & Julia Stone, or Stephen.
Writing
Drawing is something I do mostly for myself, in my own comfort zone. But most of the pieces I write end up being read by other people, and are in one way or another open to criticism. During my schooling, I was always told by my teachers that I wrote very long and hard-to-understand sentences, even in my mother tongue, Turkish. Although I’m inclined to disagree with them, I can’t disregard their comments, as they too are readers. Being a writer may not be my primary goal today, but I decided a long time ago that I was going to write for the rest of my life. That’s because there’s some of that “letting loose” in writing, too – just not so much. Nobody wants to get lost when trying to understand a person’s message, or to be left with nothing to extract from the text. When aiming to achieve that clear flow of words, I need to hear only melodies, not lyrics: for example, “Take Three” by Jerry Folk, “Watching the Storm” by U137 or “Near Lights” by Ólafur Arnalds. (A big shout out to that big name from this small column – I strongly recommend his music to everyone who’s frightened by classical music but still eager to get a taste of it somehow.)
A good friend of mine, who was composing a bit at the time, once told me that he’d be interested in seeing what I would draw while listening to his piece. If you think your music might create a work of art you’d like to look at, email me and we can set it up.