This piece exposes the tension between control and care. Inspired by a concept first envisioned by Ari Alpert years ago, Yatta Body Cut functions as both a bed and a barricade — a liminal object where rest and restraint collide. The blue hue, familiar in civic life, anchors the viewer in the shared urban environment of Istanbul. Folded militaristically, the barricades replicate discipline; yet as a bed, they suggest vulnerability, reprieve, and the fundamental human need for rest.
The handcuffs, affixed but unused, act as silent witnesses — not instruments of aggression but reminders of how structures of power can pervert even the most basic gestures of security into mechanisms of force. The entire piece urges that protest and civic engagement be expressed through peaceful avenues, embodying resistance without replicating violence.
At its core, Bed/Barricade is an invitation to reimagine systems of authority and protection as instruments of care, not coercion — an appeal to collective empathy over confrontation.
Who is Ari Alpert?
Ari Alpert was born in 1975 in Manhattan, New York, and is a multidisciplinary contemporary artist who has lived in New York, London, and Istanbul. He studied Fine Arts at the Museum School of Fine Arts in Boston. After working in photography, ceramics, sculpture, and jewelry design, he focused on printmaking and engraving techniques.
Living in Turkey since 2000, Alpert established a silkscreen studio, contributed to Istanbul’s contemporary art scene, and developed a democratic, collective, and expressive visual language that combines street art, pop art, and symbolic motifs. In addition to his visual art practice, he has performed as a DJ in various music scenes and has exhibited his work both in Turkey and internationally.
