Sena Cakiroglu

My art is on a quest to discover the unseen in an often-seen scene. I enhance and alter the feel of concrete objects and make them look out of this world. The negative space around them is my creative workspace where I paint with light. Using a DSLR and various lighting tools, I aim to cause a re-thinking of what a thing is, to make a viewer see something in an entirely different way, and therefore cause a change in perception.

Born outside the US in Turkey, currently residing and producing art in Reno. My family’s background in architecture might have some impact on how I chose to do photography. The centerpiece of a lot of my photographs is built around structures, buildings and objects. They provide a good base to construct the visual imagery I plan to bring to life. Looking back, aesthetics was a big topic at home. For something to have a visual composition was deemed essential for it to have some value. Antoni Gaudi’s architectural works impressed me and my brother at an early age. There are a lot more cultural references from my youth in Turkey and Europe that shape how I think today when I photograph. It’s a highly visual and aesthetic culture.

It wasn’t until I moved to the US in 2014 that I began to produce my own body...

B.A in Anthropology, Master's in Digital Media
Photography classes, non-degree
Sierra Arts Foundation artist in Reno, Nevada

- Portfolio Feature on Generator 4,'22 Issue, Reno, NV
- A visual reportage of infamous wildfires in San Francisco Bay Area, presented in a Smokey Road Series, shot with FujiFilm GFX featured on a Turkish photography magazine, Fotograf Dergisi, in November '20 Issue
- Photoplace Gallery's juried exhibition, "Finding the Light" featuring in Nov '20. Two photographs were selected for exhibition: one in Middlebury, Vermont gallery, and one in online gallery.
- Gray Loft Gallery's "The Meaning of Green" group exhibition in Oakland, CA featured in Lost in Death Valley piece and added to their catalog of purchase.
- Group Exhibition at Los Angeles Center for Digital Art '18
- A photographic collective exhibition exposing a "Surreal Vision" of today's society, on surreal avant-garde inspiration and interpretation of today's reality, presented by Loosen Art at Millepiani in Rome, Italy. The Lost in Death Valley piece is selected to be included in the exhibit and in their catalog for purchase