Bonjour Marilyn 2009

Curator: Standing before us is "Bonjour Marilyn," a compelling mixed-media piece created by Burhan Dogancay in 2009. It appears to be a collage, drawing heavily from street art and pop-art aesthetics. Editor: It hits you right away, doesn’t it? A gritty glamour, a beautiful mess! You’ve got these framed portraits of Marilyn and another, I think maybe it is the Mona Lisa. Curator: Yes, what we see here is really the essence of Dogancay’s exploration into urban walls—these accidental compositions, these layers of torn posters. Note the "POST NO BILLS" in the background—an ironic framing of the whole process. It is fascinating that he chooses Marilyn, of all muses, considering his own relationship with societal walls. Editor: Definitely, Marilyn embodies this fragility, the way the media and fame chew you up. Then Mona Lisa brings her knowing, ageless beauty, stuck amidst these rips and tears. It really makes you think about fame and fleeting beauty, doesn’t it? Like some strange comment on society’s obsessions. Curator: Absolutely. The mixed media—incorporating torn posters and found images—lends itself to a narrative about appropriation and transformation. This work really stands as a critique of our fascination with celebrity. Appropriation—taking iconic images and presenting them anew. The torn-ness gives this gritty aura of rebellion. Dogancay brings this Pop Art, even street-art angle, onto these iconic women. Editor: Yeah, it's kind of funny, how he elevates something usually thought of as grungy—the wall, with its old posters—by sticking these framed artworks there. The golden frames make the statement clear. Curator: Indeed. Through his meticulous deconstruction and reassembly, Dogancay’s commentary resonates strongly today as society grapples with how we immortalize individuals and, even more, with who controls those images and stories. Editor: Totally. It’s got a kind of timelessness, I guess! This art leaves me thinking about beauty, fame, the layers beneath what we see… And a little sad. Curator: For me it sparks a recognition that visual culture can be so many layers, a palimpsest of popular media—as messy as it is glorious.