Sera Ilel

Born in 1965, in Istanbul, Turkey. Sera Ilel’s porcelain paintings offer an innovative approach to various traditional practices. Within her twenty years of experience with porcelain painting, she has created a range of series that combine traditional and modern stylistic techniques, showcased at various exhibitions and arts and crafts fairs. Ilel, currently lives and works in Istanbul, Turkey.

Since 2008 she has participated in solo and group exhibitions internationally. 

Her works displayed here are a selection of Constellation Series and Golden Phoenix.

Sera Ilel’s Constellation works are a series of hand painted porcelain sculptures that pay homage to traditional and contemporary patterns through narrative and technique.

Utilizing a myriad of motifs, Ilel creates narratives of cultural heritage, conversation, and evolution. Ilel is interested in telling stories of universality in shared cultural iconographies. The first work of the series [Constellations II] looks at the Star of David, and the many forms in which it has existed in different cultures and time periods, from the ancient to today. Other works from the series are inspired by Mexican folk tales (Alebrijes), and the work of British textile designer William Morris.Bringing a multitude of themes together on hand painted and hand cast porcelain tiles, Ilel creates intricate compositions that give global heritage a new expression.

With her work Golden Phoenix, an installation of fifteen hand-painted porcelain plates, Sera Ilel has created an ode to the Phoenix ; a benevolent, mythical bird with its roots in Persian mythology. Having changed names, features, and associated stories across cultures, the Phoenix at its core remains a symbol of seeking, self-exploration, mysticism, spiritual growth, and enlightenment.