This Has Been Done Before, Drip Series, Kite and Sharks

Baykam played a pioneering role in the spread of the New Expressionism movement in Turkish art after 1980. He sometimes conveys his personal stories and contemporary artistic ideas by using a poetic, expressionist language and at other times by arranging mundane objects as collages. He uses a variety of styles ranging from the abstract to the figurative, and different media including installation and performance art. Baykam’s 'This Has Been Done Before' series reconsiders the history of Modern painting. The famous motto ‘This has been done before’ tagged to installations and paintings refers both to the limits of the production of art and the issue of originality or authenticity. While the motto express the artist’s frustration in face of the mediocrity and decay of the art system, it also scorns the critics, disarming them of their most commonly used weapon. Baykam’s expressionist drips reminds us of Pollock. But instead of working flatly, he works vertically, creating a fluid level with the dripping paint.