Today we’d like to introduce you to Seda.

Hi Seda, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?

I grew up in the beautiful city of Antalya, Turkey, as the youngest in my family. When I hit high school, I moved to Istanbul with my older brother and sister, I had the best time almost like a college experience while I was in high school . Then I studied engineering in college, but it just didn’t feel right for me. While I was studying, I started helping my sister on a movie set with set design and styling, and that’s when I really enjoyed my creative side.

After a while, I felt like work was taking over my life, so I decided to visit to New York. I started out working at a restaurant at the beginning, and then I spent about nine months in Buenos Aires with my husband where he is from, which was a nice experience. When we came back to New York, I found a job at a purse design studio, but it closed down after a year, and that really made me rethink what I wanted to do.

I found a job for teaching kids how to make sculptures, which brought back my love for clay. Even though I had some experience with sculpture from high school, I wanted to learn more about ceramics. I started working with a ceramic artist, and during the pandemic, I launched my own project called “TheMudBklyn.” Now, we team up with different artists to build a community around ceramics.

The year 2024 had a lot of ups and downs but also a time of growth and change for especially my personal life and my business. “TheMudBklyn” means so much to me, and the amazing people I’ve met along the way are the reason I keep moving forward in this journey and now I am starting a new life, while it’s scary, it’s also exciting.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?

Being an artist and running a business alone in New York is not easy. First of all, NY landlords overreacted about the ceramic work, which made it difficult to find a suitable space. I had to change my studio three times in two years, despite my electrician jokingly telling me that he didn’t want to see me for a while for my own good! On top of that, inflation has had a significant impact. Prices have increased dramatically, and art is considered a luxury, so I can’t blame people for wanting to cut back on their expenses.

On the other hand, New York has an amazing community. While the city is incredibly competitive, we all know we’re in the same boat, which brings a strong sense of support among us. Since I had been working on movie sets, I’ve learned how important people are in the art industry. We understand what we’re fighting for, and that connection motivates me even more. I know I can always reach out to someone to share my complaints or my joys.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?

I am a ceramist and sculptor, and I guess I can call myself an organizer because I really enjoy organizing events and parties for other people or for myself. My main medium is clay, and I mostly make bigger objects, including some functional pieces. I like my pieces to look like they’re coming from one person, but I don’t like repetitive things, so they all have their own individual forms and textures.

Besides that, sometimes I work with plaster, and recently I’ve been doing stone carving, which I really want to focus on more this year.
Well, I guess I am proud that I know what I want and that I’m working on it nonetheless. Time will shape it more for sure, but I am excited to bring in more sculptural ceramic pieces and work on some tiles in the future.

Any advice for finding a mentor or networking in general?

Let me tell you, your best friend can be your best mentor, so make sure you surround yourself with the right people. I am lucky because my best friend is a social media manager, influencer, and entrepreneur, and she shares a lot of great insights with me.

Besides that, go explore, meet new people, and ask them how they’re doing. Get as much advice as you can and be curious! There are tons of resources online to read and watch. It’s all about how open you are to taking in all this information and ideas. And don’t underestimate anyone or anything; you never know what life will bring or what doors might open for you.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.themudbklyn.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/themudbklyn/
• Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@themudbklyn?_t=8pQW8G1YJ7m&_r=1

Image Credits

all the pictures taken by me Seda Anac