‘Parallel universes’: The world is split into two for this Turkish artist

In September 2015, the image of Alan Kurdi—a two-year-old Syrian refugee—lying lifeless and face down in the sand on a beach in southwestern Türkiye went viral, sending shockwaves around the world.

Among those deeply shaken was Ugur Gallenkus, a digital collage artist in Istanbul, for whom the photo became more than a symbol of loss.

For him it became an image that depicted the erosion of humanity and a decimation of innocent and vulnerable lives.

“The photo of Alan Kurdi made me think of a child around me,” Gallenkus told TRT World. “I thought, ‘That could be a child I know in that place.’”

In response, he created a photomontage: near Kurdi’s body, he placed a bucket of toys and the shadow of a child, an imagined alternate reality where play and safety still existed.

It was the first of many juxtapositions in which worlds were placed side by side, each revealing starkness and contradictions.

Gallenkus merges images from photojournalists with his own stark compositions. “I aim to break down the borders that governments and states impose on us, encouraging people to look at problems from a humanitarian perspective,” he said.

The urgency of the crisis leapt at him, becoming impossible to ignore. “Standing there, I reflected on the desperation that drives people to embark on dangerous journeys that could change their lives forever,” he said.

He has built a body of work that confronts the world’s fractures, from war and forced migration to environmental crises.

“The fact that photographers or photojournalists, whose editorial or stock photos are used in my works, allow and support my projects and are my biggest source of motivation,” Gallenkus said.

In recent years, he has compiled two books of photomontages– the first “Parallel Universes of Children,” published in 2021, and the second one, “Parallel Universes of War and Peace” published in 2024.

Maria Vittoria, a gallerist who represents his work in Rome, describes his approach as both unflinching and deeply necessary.

“What impresses me about Ugur Gallenkus is his ability to expose global disparities without rhetoric,” she told TRT World. “He presents the world as it truly is.”

Montage of pain and loss

Born and raised in Istanbul, Gallenkus took an unlikely path to political art. His collages do not just tell stories—they force viewers to cognise the chasm that exists between privilege and despair.

In one, a father bathes his children in the ruins of a bombed-out Gaza home, while on the other side, a pristine bathroom glows under a chandelier.

In another, the half-shattered face of a wounded Afghan child is juxtaposed with the immaculate glamour of Lady Gaga.

Another one shows a Syrian girl’s portrait merges seamlessly with Johannes Vermeer’s Girl with a Pearl Earring.

“In my work, I reinterpret photographs from around the world, aiming to shed light on pressing global issues from a fresh perspective,” Gallenkus said.

His approach has resonated. He has amassed more than a million followers on Instagram and X, where his images are shared widely, often going viral.

“By combining the universal language of visuals with the accessibility of social media, I strive to convey messages that transcend cultural and linguistic boundaries,” he said.

His work has been exhibited across Europe and, in an unexpected turn, has made its way into school curricula. His collages appear in textbooks in Brazil and Belgium, and he is included in the International Baccalaureate’s English course.

Reframing a divided world

“In my work, I reinterpret photographs from photographers around the world, aiming to highlight pressing global issues in a fresh context,” Gallenkus said. “Through my collages, I strive to remind audiences of these issues by presenting them within a new composition.”

Gallenkus’s collages have drawn both praise and backlash, exposing the polarisation in how people react to images of suffering. “It’s horrifying to see how desensitised, militarised, and stripped of humanity people have become,” he said.

Though his method was inspired, in part, by American artist Stephen McMennamy, whose digital montages blend unrelated images into single compositions. For Gallenkus, the divisions in his work were about exposing a reality that many preferred to look away from.

“The series was born out of my desire to highlight human tragedies and evoke a sense of shared humanity,” he said.

Reactions to his work often depend on the identity of those depicted.

“If my collage shows a mother and child escaping missiles, and they are Israeli, the reactions are one way,” he said. “If the same image depicts a Gazan mother and child in burial shrouds, the reactions are completely different.”

Despite this, he sees his work as a necessary intervention.

“By combining the universal language of visuals with the global accessibility of social platforms, I aim to convey messages that transcend cultural and linguistic boundaries,” he added. But can art change the world, we ask him.

“I believe art can raise awareness and inspire action,” he said. “Yes, art can change the world.”