HELLO CES XC AND A WARM WELCOME TO 4BYSIX’S VEHICLES FOR CHANGE INITIATIVE AND GARAGE EXHIBITION PROJECT. THANK YOU FOR TAKING THE TIME TO SPEAK TO US ABOUT YOUR CREATIVE PRACTICE. 

TO START, FOR ANYONE WHO MAY BE SEEING YOUR WORK FOR THE FIRST TIME, PLEASE CAN YOU INTRODUCE YOURSELF AND TELL US WHY YOU WERE INTERESTED IN THIS PARTICULAR PROJECT?

Hey! I’m Ces XC, an AI visual artist based in Istanbul. My work is mostly about creating worlds that sit somewhere between reality and imagination. I love taking familiar things, whether it’s fashion, architecture, culture or everyday life, and transforming them into something unexpected.

What interested me about this project was the idea of giving something that already exists a completely new identity. I think that’s actually very close to what I do with my own work. Taking something familiar and pushing it into a different reality. I also really liked the idea of combining art, automotive culture and sustainability in one creative space.

GIVEN THAT YOUR WORK BRINGS HERITAGE AND CULTURAL AUTHENTICITY INTO THE SURREAL WHICH REFLECT THEMES OF IDENTITY, MEMORY, AND MOTION, CAN YOU TELL US ABOUT YOUR CREATIVE PROCESS WHEN MAKING THESE WORKS? DID YOU FIND ANY COMMON THEMES WHICH EMERGED NATURALLY?

My creative process is very instinctive. I usually start with a feeling or an image in my head rather than a fully developed concept. Sometimes it’s a specific atmosphere, a color, a texture or even something I’ve seen in everyday life.

I don’t really like limiting myself too much during the creative process. I prefer experimenting and letting unexpected things happen, especially when working with AI. That’s actually one of my favorite parts of the technology. You can start with one idea and discover something completely different along the way.

I think the common theme in my work is the relationship between reality and the impossible. I love creating images that feel familiar at first, but when you look closer, something feels different. Almost like a memory of a place you’ve never actually visited.

WHAT MORE CAN YOU TELL US ABOUT THE WORK YOU HAVE MADE - DID YOU USE ANY SPECIFIC REFERENCES OR DIRECTION TO INFORM THE FINAL COLLECTION OF IMAGES?

For this collection, I wanted to explore the relationship between objects, environments and imagination. I was interested in how something connected to automotive culture could exist in a completely different visual world. My inspiration usually comes from many different places. Fashion photography, cinema, architecture, music and even random moments from everyday life. I love combining these influences rather than following one specific reference.

Visually, I wanted the images to feel cinematic but also slightly strange, almost like scenes from a world that doesn’t exist. For me, the most important thing is creating an atmosphere that makes people stop for a second and question what they’re looking at.

WHAT WAS THE INITIAL DRAW TO WORKING WITH 4BYSIX ON THIS PROJECT, DO YOU HAVE A PERSONAL OR CREATIVE CONNECTION TO THE CONCEPT OF UPCYCLING LUXURY CAR PARTS?

What I really liked about 4BYSIX was the idea of transformation. Taking something that originally had a completely different purpose and turning it into a piece of art is a really interesting concept to me.I think there’s a strong connection between upcycling and the way I approach AI art. In both cases, you’re taking something that already exists and giving it a new meaning, a new context and sometimes even a completely new identity.

I’ve always been interested in automotive design from a visual perspective, especially the shapes, materials and details. So having the opportunity to explore that world through my own artistic language felt like a natural connection.

LASTLY, CAN YOU TELL US HOW YOU ARE AND HOW LIFE IN THE STUDIO HAS BEEN TREATING YOU? ARE THERE ANY NEW PROJECTS YOU ARE CURRENTLY WORKING TOWARD? 

I’m doing great, thank you! Things have been pretty intense lately, but in a really exciting way. I’m constantly experimenting, learning new things and trying to push my visual language further.

I’ve been working on different projects across music, fashion and commercial art, including collaborations with brands and musicians. I also work closely with my creative partner Spike on moving-image projects, which has been another exciting way to bring these visual worlds to life.

Right now, I’m really interested in exploring how far we can take AI as a creative medium. I don’t see it as just a tool for generating images. For me, it’s another way of expressing ideas and building worlds that wouldn’t otherwise exist.

I think we’re still at the very beginning of what’s possible, and that’s what keeps me excited every day.