Masist Gül (1947-2003) with his strong physique was a Turkish actor who played obscure roles in more then 300 hundred movies.
In his private life, unknown to the outside world, he was an extraordinary artist.
He produced a large amount of collages, drawings and poetry.
During the 80’s he conceived and made by hand, using a periodical comic-book format, a series of 6 books with the title Kaldirim Destani – Kaldirimlar Kurdunun Hayati / Pavement Myth – The Life of the Pavement’s Wolf.
Bent 001 will be the first existing reproductions of these originals.
The originals of Kaldirim Destani – Kaldirimlar Kurdunun Hayati / Pavement Myth – The Life of the Pavement’s Wolf and Gul's drawings and writings have been shown in an exhibition at BAS from 25th May until the 25th June.
Bent 001-1: Pavement Myth – The Life of the Pavement's Wolf 1
The story is based on Gül’s own life. It is written in Turkish. As all the texts are in rhyme they cannot be translated without significant loss of meaning.
The narrative takes place between 1905 and 1978 in Adana. It is told as a flashback.
Book1:The protagonist called Kaldirim Fahri/ Pavement Fahri is a tough-guy, a mirror image of Gül himself, who is telling a group of friends his life story. Whilst talking, he often pauses to fight with his best friend and adversary.
The first book is the story of a baby who is found in the toilet by a witch. She calls it ‘bog-rat’ and dedicates herself to torturing the child. She keeps him in the coal shed, when he grows a little she sends him out to beg.
From his first day he has to fight and he never stops
Bent 001-2:Pavement Myth – The Life of the Pavement's Wolf 2
Book 2: After much torture, the witch sends the “Bog-rat” into the streets. There he finds a gun and crawls home to attack her. After a violent fight she leaves him for dead to find a new child. Disguised as a man and putting a couple and their son under a spell she returns with a boy. He calls her Papa. “Bog-rat” is revived and renews his struggle. The witch changes the new boy into a giant to help her fight. Seeing the torture she submitted him to in his minds eye, “Bog-rat” develops supernatural power and finally triumphs, partly eating the witch before she dies. As she expires, the many spells and curses she put on people in the town are lifted. For “Bog-rat”, the fact that he could kill the powerful witch is proof that he is not a rat, but a human being. The second child, awaking from his spell, sees the corpse and runs into the street yelling “murder”. The police arrive and a chase ensues.
Bent 001-3: Pavement Myth – The Life of the Pavement's Wolf 3
Book 3: Fleeing from the police, the boy repulses people in the street with his smell. Finally he is caught, in prison he gobbles the food he is given and argues with the guards. A fight starts. He literally sees the face of his old tormentor the witch appear in that of the guards and fights insanely. He is carried unconscious to the prison hairdresser. In court, prompted by witnesses, he relates the story of his life, the crowds listening are deeply affected by his tragic tale. The judge, sceptical at first, later recognizes the name of the witch and is grateful to the tiny hero. He knew the terrible witch and tells a story about her: once there was a cruel man. One night as he roamed the streets he heard strange sounds coming from a house. Inside this house the witch was torturing a victim. The bad guy looked in and came face to face with her. He was struck by the resemblance between this face and his own.
Bent 001-4: Pavement Myth – The Life of the Pavement's Wolf 4
Book 4: The witch and the cruel man fought bitterly and, using her spells, she won. As he lay dying, his hair fell out, revealing a cross on his skull. The witch cried out in remorse as she realized this man was her son. Back in the courtroom, the judge releases the small hero and gives him some money. But being completely ignorant and unadjusted, it is impossible for him to partake in public life. In the Turkish bath he accidentally causes a fight, in a restaurant they will not serve the smelly outcast. Despondent he goes to the dead witch’s house, his former home. But in his ignorance, he misunderstands even food, choking in lard and burning his mouth with peppers. Finally he drops off to sleep while matches are burning on the floor.
Bent 001-5: Pavement Myth – The Life of the Pavement's Wolf 5
Book 5: The house burns to the ground. Homeless and hungry, the boy wanders through the night, and falls asleep by a building. The morning shows the building to be a butcher’s shop. The butcher is angry to find a smelly outcast asleep by his shop and they fight. Policemen take the boy to court. The judge, though sympathetic, feels obliged to send him to prison for 3 years. The boy is ecstatic: At last! Food, shelter, a safe place to stay. After 3 years he is dragged unwillingly from the cell. He proceeds to make a general nuisance of himself, hoping to get locked up again. But in the end he goes too far, nearly getting himself killed and once more he is on the run. Hiding away from his enemies, he is desperately lonely and hopeless.
Bent 001-6: Pavement Myth – The Life of the Pavement's Wolf 6
Aslı Çavuşoğlu 1982, İstanbul.
A Crime Story...
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Digitally cloning, fitting, attaching the parts, Hüner constructs a whole as it suggests itself from the parts.
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Released on February 5th, 2008