10:AM is a storyteller in pursuit of its own issue. It carries the messages it wants to give to the finely crafted illustrative prints and graphic designs with an artistic formula. Both the wearer and the viewer become a part of these stories. Seçil Alkış is the founder and designer of 10:AM, which tells the stories of the social realities we know, live and will affect us in the future through clothes.

Having shuttled between New York and Istanbul for many years with her work in the art world, Seçil Alkış’s artistic identity brings a different perspective to the brand. We can say that 10:AM, which takes sociological issues that are ignored on its radar, is more than a fashion brand, it offers a concept for its followers. Backed by the new world, new interaction methods and of course the power of social media, it presents the ideas it adopts with different collections it releases every month. “Is art for art’s sake? Or for society? Actually for both; unfortunately, the absence of one prevents art from existing,” says Seçil and we start talking with Seçil, proceeding from that fine line where art and fashion intersect.

Author: Iris Isik

Photograph: Melissa Water Flows

We knew you as a director at different art galleries in Istanbul and New York; for the last few years, you have been creating meticulously designed designs with the brand 10:AM. So, what led you to 10:AM on your journey that started in the art world? What is the origin story behind the brand?

I can say that I found the most missing aspect of the art world at 10:AM. We opened a group exhibition in Chelsea, New York in 2013. There was a work by Andy Warhol in it, we planned a grand opening and the number of visitors that night did not exceed 200. Even if you exhibit the work of one of the most well-known artists in the world, the audience you can reach in the art world can unfortunately be very limited. On the other hand, when you produce products that convey your ideas with the new world, new interaction equations and the power of social media, you can get 1 million views in a day.

I think I can summarize this better by answering a question that has become a cliché; Is art for art's sake? Or is it for society? Actually, for both; unfortunately, the absence of one prevents art from existing. Even on the invoice of my first company it said "If something is beautiful, everyone sees it". I believe in this very much. What you do should always be very good and you should have a promotional area that will reach the masses. 10:AM created a world for me that combined these two worlds and allowed me to breathe.

When we look at the slogans and illustrations in the 10:AM collections, we can see that they bear traces of the brand's relationship with art. At what point do these two different fields merge and begin to feed each other? There is a process that extends from the formation of the idea to putting it on paper and hanging on a hanger. How does this process proceed at 10:AM?

I think an artist is someone who uniquely and aesthetically addresses issues related to their own life. As a former artist, I can say that I discovered a way to convey my ideas by existing in a field that I don't want to call "fashion". I am interested in many issues related to myself and the world. I often get stuck when I can't convey them completely. In all the designs where I can convey my ideas, the starting point is already ready in my mind, when I knead the idea a little and put it into visuals, I share it with the team. The process of deciding among alternatives progresses by exchanging ideas with my team, I am a manager/designer who wants everyone to be involved in the process. As for the process other than the designs, since the product groups are already determined a year in advance, the whole team knows which product will be released in which month, the category and color variations. In fact, we often finalize it with consensus and start discussing the marketing area, and the rest is reflected on you. The subject of the month is detailed, the appropriate shooting mode is determined and the planning begins. Of course, our biggest plus value is Sude Alkış 's eye and Instagram dominance. Each visual and video is planned and implemented one by one in full detail in order to receive the great interactions I mentioned above.

The digital world also requires multi-dimensional thinking. Especially for storytellers… So, with what kind of formulas do you construct the story/message you plan to convey with 10:AM? From the first stage of design to social media communication, what determines your strategies for you?

Storytellers is a very accurate definition. But it would be more accurate to say that we are still searching for our story. Sometimes, when I look for a visual, I scan our past posts and realize how much we have improved. Not in a technical sense, but because we can express our problems more accurately and convey them to the other party. I think that the most important formula in the 10:AM world is being ourselves. 10:AM was always on its own path and continued like that, we always had our own problems and we tried to convey this. For example, our need for a swimsuit arose from the lack of a comfortably sexy swimsuit. We built a story on this by saying, “We do not support the risky swimsuit trend and we want our comfort back!” and we produced bikini and swimsuit patterns that we brought to the perfect form by requesting excessive revisions accordingly, we wanted everyone to be natural and comfortable even during the shoot. If you look at our current Instagram account, you can feel how calm, raw yet sexy it is with untouched, raw and comfortable frames.

There is a business world where a single professional identity is not enough. In addition to being a designer, in which areas do you need to be the founder and director of a brand the most? Or let's ask this: if we put your identity as a founder aside, in which areas do you like to produce? What are your priorities?

I actually had a lot of experience in management as I had managed a lot of projects and teams before, but I have been learning how to actually run a company for two years now and it has been a complete game changer.

In fact, I have to be everywhere at all times, plan and follow everything well in advance, but on top of that, managing finances and designing simultaneously is very tiring, I admit 🙂 For example; even a single piece of swimsuit has 12 different details that need to be approved, and this only applies to product production, not to mention other things. But I love the production side of the business and in fact, I would like to be on the production side only. The infrastructure of our company in Turkey is established and works smoothly. When the system of our company in New York is fully established, I want to hand over the management part and be on the design-production side only. Designing a product from scratch, bringing it to life and seeing it on people is an indescribable feeling for me.

The modest influence of street culture on fashion trends in the 1990s has become quite dominant in the last few years. We can now easily see bold styles that feed on different identities and are not afraid to express what they think everywhere. So, what kind of a statement does 10:AM have in street style? What kind of messages does it want to convey?

First of all, I would like to say that we do not follow any trends and will not follow them because we do not position ourselves in fashion. We are a brand that prefers to distribute our ideas through textile products. Textile is just a tool for us and I hope it will remain so. Our connection with street culture stems from our closeness to sociology. In 2009, I opened an exhibition where all my works were displayed at the same time, I received the young artist of the year award (Akbank Contemporary Artists) and for the first time, one of my works was included in a very good collection. I received this award not only because my works were well painted and beautiful, but also because they had a story. I would like to add a very short section from an interview I gave;

"Sometimes I just take photos. I see old cars around that look like they've aged. These cars are not appreciated enough by the people who drive them. I haven't met anyone who dreams of buying an Anadol car yet. That's what I paint in detail. In the background, there are sometimes more luxurious cars, a grocery store, a house with blue shutters and a tree, just like the little inconsistencies in our lives. I paint pictures of cars not because I like them, but because their alien status and loneliness interest me."

Even back then, I was relating to the story behind a house, a car or clothes, not as a product. And you can see in the world we created that this has not changed.

10:AM is not yet transparent and brave enough, or I can say not according to my understanding. But sociological readings and reflections will always continue.

One of the factors why street culture is embraced even by high fashion is that everything that comes out of the street is original and individual. What are the characteristics of street culture that shape 10:AM the most? How are the colors and sounds that come out of here reflected in 10:AM collections?

The street is a place where we live and as I said it is impossible not to be affected by it. In my designs, I am more interested in silence apart from colors and sounds. Fear of What? We have also covered this in the series and I want to continue this series. I think that the clear realities that we know, live and will affect us in the future are never talked about and everyone remains silent about it. For example, a huge generation is growing up using drugs heavily and no one talks about it. I am currently working on a design related to this.

Although trends tell us a lot about our day, they can sometimes be seen as “momentary” and “temporary”. How do you follow trends? When it comes to prominent trends, what do you take and what do you quickly move away from in your designs?

I think trends are very boring and not subjective. Managing the masses by making them the same and directing consumption is not a world we want to be in. That's why I don't follow them. I always prioritize style over trends. It's hard to believe, but I'm not someone who likes to shop. My dream is to wear only 10:AM one day. In fact, when I was little, my dream was to have a special tailor when I grew up, to sew only the clothes I wanted.

Your ninth collection, consisting solely of T-shirts, was released last April Fear of What invites everyone to find their own nature and live themselves as they are. It promises a future that does not allow being governed by taboos and leaves fears behind. In what way do you think it is possible to break taboos, move away from fears and become truly free in the dynamics of today's world? In this sense, what does 10:AM's new collection tell us?

Yes, I prepared that design inspired by the “Social Animals” exhibition that I curated in 2013. “ Sociology starts with two simple elements: human behavior has a regular and repetitive pattern, and human beings are not actually isolated creatures, but social animals.” We brought Ely Chinoy's words to t-shirts. I should talk a little bit about the exhibition to better understand the story we wanted to convey on the t-shirts.

Social Animals was an exhibition focusing on the dialogue between ethics and human values ​​through social psychology, an interdisciplinary field that fills the gap between psychology and sociology. The definition of truly being free is very broad and can be taken to many places, but it is definitely possible to free yourself. You may say that it is easy to say but difficult to apply, but we did it, we worked hard and questioned a lot, but we did it. I cannot say it in our country because psychology is the most difficult thing in the whole world and the most difficult question is who are you? The concepts of defining yourself and freeing yourself. That is why we do not follow trends but people and their psychology, we want to reflect what is on our minds in our products and create a community with those who think like us, and we want to strengthen and support each other.

This collection also feeds off your identity as a curator and is based on the Social Animals exhibition that you curated in 2013. In the exhibition, artists Mehmet Dere, Sibel Diker, Süha Şahin, Merve Şendil, Halil Vurucuoğlu, Lara Ögel portray a society that can live our lives far from questioning and seeking balance. The traces of this society Fear of What What details do we see in your collection?

Each artist in the exhibition presented a process of negotiation between leaving the existing as it is or questioning and identifying the problems. Merve Şendil (also a close friend of mine) prepared reflections and demonstrations on how desires and expectations are formed and staged in daily life. The most striking title of the t-shirt in this collection is the embossed Fear of What The text followed by "Its 2022, you can live as you desire." We really wanted to question and remind that the year is 2022 and we still can't live as we dreamed. We chose a side under the logo in the front section and Right? Wrong? Neither? We added the words. Here, we stated that the concepts of right and wrong are variable and that we are always side by side with the option of “none”. Because we wanted to emphasize that everyone should have their own truth. There is also a small Andy Warhol inspiration under the t-shirt. There is a small drawing I designed inspired by one of his first graphic works under the t-shirt. Another aspect that inspires me is The Factory, which Andy Warhol founded and brought together everyone who is similar to him. Our company name, 10:AM FACTORY, comes from there. Andy Warhol is a great source of inspiration not with his works but with his life. With what I learned from him, I can say “You can live as you desire”.

Fear of What and Raw&Sexy are fairly new collections, but since we know how productive you are at 10:AM, we have to ask: What other projects do you have on your agenda for the near future?

Of course, we already have a lot of designs and product lines for the 2023 season, but there is a pop-up store project that excites us in the near future. As you know, we are a brand that was established during the Covid-19 outbreak, so we only 10am.shop We had sales on the website. Now, for the first time, we are creating a space in Alaçatı where you can physically touch our products and we plan to continue throughout the summer. But the big news that excites us is that Sude and I are moving to New York. From now on, you will see the 10:AM team more on the streets of New York with new projects.