Description provided by the artist: .I believe that it has a significance related to my understanding/critique of the concept of equality within the context of Turkey where it had long been considered inappropriate for women to smoke in the presence of their elder family members, especially their fathers. Furthermore, women smoking freely had been associated with sexual availability. On the other hand, smoking as an act has a class component. For women of higher socio-economic status smoking had been a sign of modernity, freedom and 'Western' values.. .This artwork is part of the project Footnotes on Equality: http://footnotesonequality.eu/all/
Description provided by author: .To me personally, this object is the symbolic manifestation of different health care systems that I am part of in different countries at the moment, the Netherlands as a resident and Turkey as a citizen. .The lack of (medical) care, human-centered approach, knowledge and understanding in the Dutch health care system has astonished me ever since I moved to the Netherlands and every time I need to go to the doctor. However, what was even more surprising to me was to see a complete opposite manner in Turkey when I had a car accident in Istanbul. The entire procedure was so thorough that even though I had was taken to the hospital in a very uncomfortable way and I had to wear this disturbing collar for a while (so I was in a constant state of discomfort), I had a feeling of trust and comfort all the time.. .This artwork is part of the project Footnotes on Equality: http://footnotesonequality.eu/all/