ABC Flags
ABC Flags
Silkscreen on canvas, printed the both sides, 185 x 120 cm, 2013-2014
ABC Flags is composed of three different alphabets printed on red flags, all used for writing Kurdish. No uniform writing system has been created for Kurdish yet, but the Latin alphabet is used to write it in Turkey, a modified Cyrillic alphabet is used to write it in the former Soviet area, and a modified Arabic alphabet (so-called Sorani alphabet) is used to write it in Iran, Iraq and Syria.
In these areas, the status of the Kurdish language is worrying. In Iran, the Kurds are not allowed to publish or teach anything in their own language. Syria is in a state of war. Turkey has a long history of discriminating its Kurdish minority. In many former Soviet states teaching and publishing in Kurdish is allowed, but Kurdish ABC books are no longer published - as in Iran, Kurdish can be learned only orally. Currently, the Kurds have probably the best status in the autonomous region of Kirkuk in Iraq.
In the work ABC Flags, the Kurds serve as an example of a culture that is in danger of becoming integrated to the dominant culture. The red flag is often associated with revolution and demands of independence. In this work, alphabets have been printed on the flags instead of slogans. Accordingly, every child should have the right to own mother tongue, culture and their history.