Gizem Yücelen

Her academic researches focuses on how labour rights violations in the textile and fashion industries can be made visible to consumers by artistic activism with the industry's materials and imagery. Her researches explores the potential of textiles not only as cultural artifacts but also as tools of resistance and activism. Through her artistic practice, she creates new worlds using textile materials, crafting intimate and meticulously hand-constructed scenes that reflect inner landscapes. Her creative approach centers on honoring traditional textile craftsmanship while experimenting with form, narrative, and critique.

In 2014, she founded Hooop the Bag, a handmade bag brand that celebrates artisanal techniques and textile heritage. With this brand, she won first prize at the Turkish Registered Trademarks Association Design Competition in 2017 and The Independent Handbag Designer Awards in 2018.

She holds a Ph.D. in Textile from Marmara University, where she completed her dissertation titled "The Role Of Activist Art In The Labour Struggles In The Garment Industry." She earned her MA in Fashion and Textile Design from NABA Milano and her BA in Advertising from Istanbul Bilgi University.

She currently works as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Textile and Fashion Design at Istanbul Okan University.

EDUCATION

BA - Istanbul Bilgi University, Advertising

MA - Nuova Accademia di Belle Arti Milano (NABA), Fashion and Textile Design (Thesis: Between Two Edges: Art & Fashion)

Proficiency in Arts - Marmara University, Textile Department (Thesis: The Role of Activist Art in Workers' Struggle in the Ready-Made Clothing Industry)

AWARDS

The 12th Independent Handbag Designer Awards, THE UBM Best Handbag in Overall Style and Design - 2018

Türkiye Registered Trademarks Association, Most Original Product Award - 2017

ACADEMIC WORKS

Article: Yücelen, G. (2025). Questioning Fashion with the Fashionable: Analyzing Artworks that Question Fashion Industry. Bodrum Journal of Art and Design, 4(1), 1-24.

Symposium: Redesigning Activism: Contribution of Suffragette Artists to Movement and Their Creative Interventions, 2nd International Symposium on Women in Audiovisual Culture, April 17, 2025, Istanbul Okan University

Report: Childhood Lost in Textile: The Issue of Child Labour in the Turkish Garment Sector. Temiz Giysi Kampanyası, February 2025

SPEECHES

Università degli Studi della Campania Luigi Vanvitelli, ‘‘Sartorial Reflections: Artistic Responses to Fashion Issues” - November 3, 2023

ESAD – Escola Superior de Artes e Design / College of Art and Design, ‘‘Ethics and Sustainability in Fashion” - April 3, 2022

MADAkademi Meetings,‘‘Corporations or Human Rights: Who Has the Power in the Fashion Industry?’’ - November 22, 2021

Istanbul Gelişim University TasarımFest’21, ‘‘Sustainability and Fashion in the Age of Digitalization’’ - May 5, 2021

Cappadocia University Sustainable Life Film Days After-Film, ‘‘Sustainable Fashion Movement’’ - February 6, 2021

IV. Textile Accessories Trend and Innovation Event, ‘‘Dreaming of Ethical Fashion with Future Designers’’ - November 20, 2019

ONLINE ARTICLES AND INTERVIEWS

Kaos GL 183 Fashion, ‘‘The entire journey of a garment’’ - March April 2022

Gastro Eko, ‘‘If your greenwashing is over, can we move on to the main topic?’’- November 20, 2021

Bego Jeans Blog, ‘‘We Got Stuck at One Point’’ - June 27, 2020

Bego Jeans Blog, ‘‘And That’s How Change Began’’ - March 8 2020

Dünya Newspaper, ‘‘Motivation Shows Me My Way’’ - March 23, 2018

Cosmopolitan, ‘‘Hooop the Bag’’ - October 2017; p.136

Sealife Magazine, ‘‘Hoops Turned Into Bags’’ - June 2017; p.60

Alem Magazine com, ‘‘The Designer Who Broke the Rules’’ - July 13, 2016; p.98

EXHIBITIONS

Paslaşmalar VIII, Gazhane Museum - 2025

Paslaşmalar VII, Evin Art Gallery - 2022

Marmara University Graduate Exhibition, Cumhuriyet Museum and Art Gallery - 2018

Milan Design Week, Ventura Lambrate - 2017

Pitti Immagine Filati 74 - 2014

Hooop The Bag Collection Launch, Mısır Apartment AFF - 2016