Chimera

The Body as Optical Rupture

Mirrored, fractured, reformed. Chimera turns the body into illusion—where flesh bends, multiplies, and escapes the singular gaze.

Photography promises to capture what is. Chimera disrupts that promise. In this ongoing series, Burak Bulut Yıldırım uses damaged mirrors, refractive surfaces, and projected light to fragment the body into something that cannot be fixed or fully known. The figure appears doubled, stretched, folded into itself—not broken, but liberated from the tyranny of a single perspective.

The series title invokes the mythological chimera: a creature assembled from incompatible parts, impossible yet undeniably present. Here, the body becomes its own chimera—a form that contains contradictions, that cannot be reduced to a single truth. These distortions are not added in post-production. Every fracture is achieved in-camera, through the choreography of light, surface, and flesh.

The work exists in dialogue with artists who have challenged the body’s apparent unity. Hans Bellmer’s La Poupée dismembered and reassembled the female form to expose the violence beneath desire—but Yıldırım’s approach differs fundamentally. Where Bellmer cut and sutured, Yıldırım refracts; there is no violence here, only optical multiplication. The body remains intact while perception splinters.

Two distinct visual strategies operate within Chimera. The first employs deliberately damaged mirrors—surfaces scratched, aged, or scored—that catch and scatter the reflection into overlapping planes. The body appears to fold through itself, occupying multiple positions simultaneously. The second strategy uses projected light that slices across the body in darkness, reducing the figure to contours and edges. In both cases, the photograph does not record a body but a perceptual event.

The contemporary resonance is unavoidable. In an age of filtered selfies, AI-generated bodies, and augmented reality, Chimera asks: what is an authentic image of a body? The answer, these photographs suggest, may be that no single image can contain the body’s full truth. Every representation is already a distortion; Chimera simply makes that distortion visible.

Within the series, the sub-group Dysmorphia explores a darker register. Here, bodies are photographed through scratched glass and warped reflective surfaces, their forms stretched and compressed in ways that evoke the distorted self-perception of body dysmorphic disorder. These images do not illustrate a diagnosis; they visualize an experience. What does it feel like when the mirror lies?

Chimera has been in development for over a decade, with Dysmorphia emerging as a focused investigation in recent years. The series continues to expand as new optical methods are explored. Selected works are available as limited edition archival prints through Artsper, Saatchi Art, and Artmajeur.

Chimera, DSC09412-2, nude art photography: Torso with breasts lit in red and green, and a purple light on the lower abdomen, in darkness.
Nude silhouette of a woman illuminated by dramatic red and green lighting, set against a black background, highlighting curves and form.
Silhouette of a figure against black background, illuminated by a striking blue light and hints of red highlights on the body.
Curved silhouette of a nude torso illuminated by vibrant pink and blue lights against a dark background, emphasizing form and contrast.
Reflective surface distorts the figure of a seated nude, showcasing smooth skin tones and emphasizing curves against a minimalistic backdrop.
Abstract composition featuring intertwined nude forms reflected in a distorted surface, with soft beige tones against a white backdrop.
A nude figure holds their thighs, reflecting a distorted, abstract view in a textured mirror against a minimalist background.
A symmetrical, abstract nude body composition with smooth curves, set against a light background, showcasing tactile textures.
Translucent figure intertwined in a curving pose against a white backdrop, with soft, muted skin tones and a textured surface reflecting light.
Abstract representation of a torso with soft curves, reflecting skin tones and metallic details against a bright background.
A nude figure is seated, hands on face, against a light backdrop, with smooth skin tones and a sense of intimacy and vulnerability.
Nude figure posed against a striking yellow and black striped backdrop, creating dynamic shadows and patterns on the skin.
Nude figure posed against a textured background, illuminated with bold yellow and black diagonal stripes, creating dramatic shadows.
Nude figure with curly hair, illuminated by a web-pattern projection on a vibrant green background, creating a striking visual contrast.
Chimera nude art photography: A nude woman with mad patterns projected on her body, set against a vibrant green background.
A nude figure stands against a vivid red background adorned with large white polka dots, framed by dramatic lighting and shadows.
Chimera Mad Patterns II: Nude art photography project featuring a woman's body covered in red and white polka dots, artistic nude photography.
Nude figure with curly hair poses against a bright red background, covered in white polka dots, creating striking shadows and contrasts.

Dysmorphia

From Dysmorphia Serie

All Projects / Exhibitions

UnNude

Silhouette of a crouching figure on a light background, emphasizing muscular limbs and dynamic pose, creating a sense of movement.

Not nude, but reimagined. In UnNude, flesh becomes form, and desire fades into geometry.

Niche

A nude figure sits gracefully on a vintage red velvet sofa, illuminated by natural light from a nearby window against a deep blue wall.

Niche is a space of tender withdrawal—where silence echoes in fabric, corners, and breath.

Ecotone

Naked figure partially obscured by foliage, posed against a tranquil lake, surrounded by lush greenery under soft sunlight.

Body becomes part of a living landscape—blurring the lines between skin, soil, and sunlight. 

Elsewhere

A nude model poses gracefully in a vibrant alley, adorned with pastel-colored walls and hanging laundry above.

Elsewhere follows the body through city shadows—unnoticed, unstilled, unreal.

Antemortem

A nude figure stands in a dimly lit barn, holding a ram's skull, framed by wooden slats and a window, in black and white.

A body caught between memory and erasure. Antemortem traces the soft residue of life before it slips into silence.

Crave

Silhouetted figures of a couple embrace closely, shrouded in smoke, highlighting their intimate connection against a soft, light backdrop.

Desire speaks in color. Crave paints the body with longing, each image trembling between heat and hunger.

Motus

A blurred figure with red hair poses against a dark background, arms raised, conveying a dynamic and expressive moment in nude art.

Not frozen moments, but echoes in motion. Motus captures the body in flux—between gesture, memory, and breath.

Lucida

Portrait of a figure with luminous, multicolored body paint against a dark background, delicately touching their chin, exuding ethereal beauty.

Under blacklight, the body becomes flare—a glow, an echo, a mirage. Lucida seeks the threshold where form dissolves.

Chimera

Monochrome image of a distorted human form submerged in water, with fluid reflections creating soft, wavy contours and shadows.

Mirrored, fractured, reformed. Chimera turns the body into illusion, where flesh bends under the gaze.

Melancholia

A nude figure leans on a wooden piano, surrounded by soft, warm lighting and draped fabric, conveying an intimate, melancholic mood.

Melancholia doesn’t shout—it lingers. These images carry silence, like a breath held too long.