Artist of the Month: January 2022
Our community manager Gregory sat down (virtually) with our inaugural ATOM-Efe, to talk about his life and work.
Gregory: Hey Efe How are you? You are our 1st Artist of the Month! How do you feel?
Efe: Hi! Before I tell you how I feel, I want to thank the Yetiswap team for giving us this opportunity. Thank you to everyone who supported me and to all the artists who participated in the contest.
I feel full of gratitude to be the first ATOM. I hope we can attract the attention of fellow artists and create a really welcoming community full of creativity.
Gregory: Tell us a bit about yourself?
Efe: I live in Tekirdağ (Turkey), I graduated from Cappadocia University in Civil Aviation and Transportation Services. I currently work in quality control at a company called BSH. In my free time, I’m always trying to improve my skills using Adobe programs & illustration software.
Gregory: Cool! So turning to your art, how did you get into it? What are your early memories of being artistic?
Efe: I’ve always been involved with art since I was a young boy. Over the last four years It has gone beyond a ‘hobby’ and I’ve constantly been looking for ways to develop my skills and source inspiration from the world around me.
Gregory: Awesome, I’m sure living in Turkey there are many places to derive historical and scenic inspiration from which helps your style. Speaking of style, how would you describe it?
Efe: Definitely my country always provides me with new ways to think and approach my artistic work. My style often relies on the imagination, I’m very detail oriented and love using vivid images in my mind-memories & feelings, stuff like that. I like to think outside the box, for example finding faces and objects in clouds and merging them all together.
Gregory: Imagination really does take us to very special places. Is there any particular work you are really proud of?
Efe: Absolutely, especially when you are a child there are no limits to what you can create and think of. There is one special piece for me that I'm really proud of. The work was drawn on a special piece of wood and then carved by hand. I made this piece in honour of my late father.
Gregory: That’s beautiful and what an amazing homage to your Dad, love the wood carving element.
What about your winning piece for the competition? Why this concept and visuals?
Efe: When thinking about the concept for the competition, I thought about how to use a Yeti & Penguin in a fun and creative way, with Yeti like the big father of the group. I also wanted to include Yetiswaps NFT partners. When you look at the details, every character has a meaning that relates to one another and adds to the piece.
Gregory: It was a great piece, a lot happening; I liked the faces up in the window looking down on the group- see those guys a lot on Twitter as memes.
So Efe, It’s a New Year & a fresh start, what are your plans for 2022?
Efe: Glad you noticed that, they were a cheeky extra and are kind of hidden up there. My plan in 2022 is to learn English, I'm definitely using google translate right now! I'm annoyed at myself for not learning it yet haha.
My artistic goals are to create my own NFT Collection and work with people who will guide me and add something to my style so I can produce more stimulating pieces. I also want to concentrate on the 3D drawing side.
Gregory: we hope to help you on that journey and bring all kinds of interesting styles to the community, maybe you will do a collaboration before the end of the year!? Also how do you see your work connecting with the evolving NFT world?
Efe:
I’d love that and am open to learning from & working with everyone who brings passion to what they do. To summarize, my art is based on popular humor that you will love on social media. Being playful with promising crypto projects and representing them in engaging ways. For example using symbolic images of Emin (The Founder of Avalanche), Pepe the Frog, and other commonly used memes in Crypto. In this way my art can connect to people who are in crypto- whether they use NFTS, DEFI or whatever else. I want to provide something for everyone.
Gregory: You’re a crypto art connector, lol, well for avalanche projects certainly. Finally Efe…..Crypto Punks or Bored Apes?
Efe: The 1st of something artistic always holds special resonance. I say Punks because they made the world meet NFTS.
Gregory: Have to agree there! Congrats again Efe on your competition win and our January ATOM role! We look forward to seeing what you bring us in 2022 ☺
Efe: Thanks Greg for the interview opportunity and endless thanks to Yetiswap and all your partners. Be sure that I will represent you in the best possible way!
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You can find more from Efe here:
His work on Yeti Swap Marketplace:
Peace out Yeti Gang and see you next month!
❄ ♥
