Forever Young was born out of a magazine. I came across a beautiful photo of this young man in a fashion magazine a few years back. As I flipped through the pages, I noticed a pattern, especially in the way models were being depicted.This magazine was going for a young and trendy look, possibly adhering to one of the oldest industry mottos (does sex really sell?), but none of the male models were shot with a smile. Not even one.

What does manhood mean, I thought.

What exactly is patriarchy? When and where does it occur in one's life? And at what cost? Where exactly does masculinity come from?

I would say this young man's portrait is more of a personal question than an answer.

I used a relatively bright color palette to communicate a sense of not having fully grown up emotionally, a quality I believe many men I personally know share. I also used plenty of metaphors depicted on his jacket: a scene with fishermen on a boat and some fish in the sea, poking fun at the expression “plenty of fish in the sea”. I used Ottoman miniature painting style on the pattern to emphasise the contrast in his inner world and outer world (miniature painting used to be produced at the royal palace of Istanbul, mostly to either celebrate a joyous event or to mourn the martyrs and heroes of a war).

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