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Ceren Yılmaz Tasarımcı-Sanatçı Profil Fotoğrafı

Biography

Ceren Yılmaz (b. 1991) graduated from the Industrial Product Design Department at Istanbul Technical University (ITU) in 2014. During her university years, she worked with the ITU Musical Ensemble in both front-of-house and backstage roles, contributing to set, costume, and poster design, and assisted in independent theater productions.

Following graduation, she gained hands-on craftsmanship experience at Elde Cam stained glass workshop; coordinated teams at Tim Show Center; worked in event and experience design at Marche Event Management; and served as art director and set designer at En Üst Kat Advertising Agency. During this period, she completed the Art Management School program at BAUART.

In 2017, she began sharing her embroidery works under the name Holygiggle and realized her first stage design with the play The Twilight Zone (Alacakaranlık Kuşağı).

Since 2021, she has been working as an independent set and costume designer in the theater sector, while exhibiting projects produced under Holygiggle across various artistic platforms.

She lives and works in Istanbul.

Artist Statement

I approach art as a designed experience that moves across disciplines, bringing together function, aesthetics, and narrative. At the core of my practice lie play, memory, and the desire to touch. For me, production is a field of play—both with the material and with the viewer. Whether it is a stage set I construct or an embroidery I stitch, my aim is to spark curiosity and a sense of discovery.

In stage design, I imagine the set as a giant toy within which the play unfolds. My choices of color, material, and form are intended not only to support the story, but to create a playground for the performer and a terrain of exploration for the audience. The space ceases to be merely a backdrop and becomes a co-actor that deepens the narrative.

In my embroidery works, I explore the relationship between thread and different surfaces, focusing on making every stage—from material selection to the performative act of production—part of the narrative. I use embroidery as a method of recording thought and emotion. Each stitch becomes a trace; each pattern forms an invisible bond of “now” that connects past and present.
Holygiggle Ceren Yılmaz Nakış Otoportre
Group Exhibitions

2025

  • Beyond the Visible, Aylak Magazine, Istiklal Art Gallery, Istanbul

2024

  • Words Fly Away, Writing Remains, Fibula Publishing, AKM, Istanbul

  • DAR, KargArt, Istanbul

2023

  • In Search of Time, Jumbo X BASE, Akaretler, Istanbul

2022

  • The Rejected II, Tilki Sanat, Alsancak, İzmir

2021

  • Online Group Exhibition, ArtCloudGallery

Publications

2024

  • Words Fly Away, Writing Remains, Fibula Publishing, Istanbul — Illustration and embroidery in a children's book.

  • Aylak Magazine, Issue 52, Istanbul — The work "Root"

Theatre Plays

2025

  • "Taksim’e Kadar", Scenic Design, Epizodik Yapım

  • "Bir Küçük Adım", Scenic Design, Kolektif Tiyatro

  • "Birileri I Selva, Dilara, Gülten - Emek Üçlemesi”, Scenic Design,  Civil Production & Tiyatro Öteki Hayatlar

  • "Canavardan Kaç", Scenic Design, PSM Atölye Kısalar Festivali

  • "Tatlı Rüyalar", Scenic & Costume Design, Lemur Company

2024

  • "Kurgusunu Arayan Adam", Scenic & Costume Design, Proje -1

  • "Hiçbi Şey Olmamış Gibi", Scenic Design, Duru Tiyatro

  • "Tebdil-i Mekan", Scenic & Costume Design, Apartman Sahne

  • "Verona Çıkmazı", Scenic Design, Nos Tiyatro

  • "Gece Kraliçesi", Scenic Design, OnStage

2023

  • "Disko Topu", Scenic & Costume Design, Lemur Company

  • "Ali Baba’nın Çiftliği: Valli Şehri Macerası", Scenic Design, Minimani

2022

  • "Eşyalı Kiralık", Scenic & Costume Design, Apartman Sahne

  • "İrma Vep’in Esrarı", Scenic Design, AltSahne

2021

  • "Sıfırla Bir Arasında", Scenic & Costume Design, AltSahne

2017

  • "Alacakaranlık Kuşağı", Scenic Design, DasDas

Professional Experience

2021 - Present

  • Scenic and Costume Designer (Independent)

2017 - Present

  • Founder & Artist, Holygiggle (Independent)

2020-2021

  • EUK. Advertising Agency, Creative Director

2016-2020

  • Marche Event Management, Event Designer

2015-2016

  • Tim Show Center, "Istanbulname" Musical, Assistant General Coordinator

2014-2015

  • Elde Cam, Stained Glass Production Worker

Education

2016-2017

  • BAUART, School of Art Direction, Certificate

2009-2014

  • Istanbul Technical University, Industrial Product Design, Bachelor's Degree

All images and content on this site are © Ceren Yılmaz.

I kindly request that you refrain from unauthorized use/copying/reproduction. If permission is required, please contact me — we can resolve it together.

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