Sara Osman

Battle for Home, was initially based on the devastation caused by the Syrian Civil war on the once habitual city, Homs. Producing a miniature fragment of the city, as a record of history, allows the viewers to experience a similar level of vulnerability as the displaced civilians. Placed in a circular arrangement, the towers depict the strength of community. The halo of rubble that surrounds the brittle towers acts as a connector between the towers – the people – conveying the importance of unity. The halo also acts as a barrier between the viewer and artwork, symbolising the division and separation of the oppressed.

Inspired by the fairy-tale Rapunzel, and the cliché narrative of a heroic prince saving a hopeless princess from her anguish. The figurative tower’s thin but tall form depict a state of solitude, but when they are grouped together in a cluster, they appear unified and whole. Abandoning the simple functions of a building, an entrance and exit to the tower is non-existent, emphasizing the feeling of confinement.  

Bounded visually illustrates the relationship with my tight-knit family through the wrapping of rope around the waist of the tiles. In the first tile, my father stands next to my mother, holding her close with his arm around her shoulder. In the second tile, my two brothers stand on either side of me, with the eldest brother squeezing us together with his arm. Like the arms in the images, the rope symbolically bounds us together, further portraying connectivity, and the importance of family unity.

The architectural installation Home was developed from the fragile plaster installation Battle for Home. Developed in heavy bronze, the dystopian city of distorted buildings resembles precious figurative totems. Grouped together in a cluster, the durable and heavy forms depict strength and honour, illustrating the protector instincts, dominance, and strength of Turkish Culture. 

Unity is the Strength in the face of calamity

Three latex scrolls narrate a teenagers first sexual encounter of sex. This piece provides a voice for the female experience of sex, while raising awareness of the issues surrounding consent.

Focusing on art as a form of therapy, the manufacturing process involved releasing tension from the mind and body into a physical entity, and into physical existence. Through writing the text, casting the individual letters, formatting the text, and fixing the text onto the scroll there is a continuous consciousness of the text, which helps to gain a wider understanding and acceptance of the experience itself.

this is love expresses my sincere gratitude towards my supportive family, and nurturing mother, who have helped me find hope in years of anguish. Through displaying sentimental childhood photographs and type-written love letters I explore both the nostalgic memories of my carefree childhood, and reflectively analyse the trauma and challenges of my adolescence. The installation acts as a physical achieve that celebrates the traditional photo-album, which is typically hidden away in an unwanted space.

In ‘The Battle for Home: Memoir of a Syrian Architect’, Marwa al-Sabouni explores how the demolished architectural structure of the Syrian city, Homs, has created an inhabitable environment, which has become the target zone for conflict. Marwa al-Sabouni imagines a new city that unites the community, bringing back the history and identity of the people, hoping that the harmony of the new-build will positively impact the social, political, and architectural structure of Homs. Like Marwa al-Sabouni, I reimagine a new city for Homs, with the aim of removing itself as the target of political conflict.

‘Sara Osman’s ‘Looking but Not Seeing’ at first sight is both enchanting and disturbing. Elongated, tower block forms crafted from mirrored stainless rise out of the suburban sod. That their surface is super reflective makes the tiny pairs of cut out windows seem darker, foreboding. Though depending on where you’re viewing the work from you can see right through the scaled down structures which suggests a fragility, a threatened preciousness.

A plaque explains that the work is ‘Reimagining a new city for the Syrian city, Homs’. Homs was a centre of resistance against the corrupt, oppressive Syrian regime. Assad’s army besieged the city and after years of fighting eventually the rebels surrendered to government forces. Osman’s miniature towers may confound our idea of post-war ruins but as the artist suggests, ‘the viewer is invited to observe themselves in the mirrored surface of each pristine building, critiquing the Western gaze for its observations, but lack of action.’ 

- Adrian Burnham, BUILDHOLLYWOOD.

Healthy Adult: I Trust Myself is a scripted psychoanalysis prepared for when the mind is in an anxious state. There are two narrators: an anxious person and their Healthy Adult. The anxious person questions their catastrophic thoughts and the Healthy Adult nurtures and consoles them using affirmations, and wiser judgement. The script symbolises the importance of using mindful techniques (such as talking to your Healthy Adult) to ground yourself in the present, as a means of self-therapy.