Taking place in 2019, the First Turkish Community Art Exhibition was organised by the Consulate General of the Republic of Turkey and Yunus Emre Institute in London to proudly celebrate the artists within our community in the United Kingdom. Three years, a pandemic, and two exhibitions later the Fourth Turkish Community Art Exhibition has come to fruition with more support and interest from the community than before. Following Covid-19 restrictions in 2021, the exhibition was carried onto the online space and has since become all the more accessible to receive works from across the UK and attention on international platforms. With the support and contributions of the Turkish artists living in the United Kingdom, we are delighted to meet again online for this exciting exhibition and enjoy the art stemming from our community.
Alongside realising our central goal of encouraging emerging and established artists of the Turkish community in the United Kingdom, over the years we have created a platform to give our artists a voice. Housing the original works from artists of all abilities and in all mediums, this annual exhibition aims also to promote unity and creativity among members of and around the Turkish community as well as connect Turkish artists to art-seekers.
We appreciate and value the Turkish artistic community’s unwavering appreciation for art and culture as well as its abundant potential in artistic talent. We believe this energetic community is the strongest pillar in the excellent bilateral relations between Turkey and the United Kingdom.
We look forward to the response of our community to this exhibition. Every Artist has their own section where you can delve into their artworks, read the works’ descriptions, and take a closer look into the background of our Artists. Our biggest thanks go to all members of the Turkish Community in the United Kingdom who have submitted their works for this exhibition. We would also like to thank our valued jury for their time and judgement in choosing from a great selection of over 144 artworks from 61 artists.
The artworks have been presented in an alphabetical and structurally sound order to ensure the exhibition is easy to navigate. You can also follow our Instagram (@yeelondra) for a spotlight on every artwork in the exhibition!
Please enjoy the exhibition!
Alev Alkan Tüfek was born in Çorum, Turkey in 1986. She has studied Painting Teaching Department at Samsun Ondokuz Mayıs University Fine Arts Faculty and completed her Master’s degree at Kutahya Dumlupinar University, Faculty of Fine Arts, Painting Department where she has also attended drawing classes as a part-time lecturer. She still continues her studies of Proficiency in Art at Ankara Haci Bayram Veli University. Tüfek is specialising in various art forms such as specializing in acrylics, oil painting, and prints and continues her artistic career in the UK since 2009. alkan_alev@hotmail.com
Ayfer Mills has completed a BTEC diploma in art and design and a degree in Fine and Applied Arts at the University of Ulster in Belfast Northern Ireland. Mills is interested in classical art and studied for several years at the Angel Academy of Art in Florence. She has exhibited her artwork in Northern Ireland and England. She has also been commissioned for portraits from Turkey, England, Northern Ireland and Australia. ayfermills@btinternet.com
Ayşe Kongur is a digital designer with a broad range of experience, from art direction to journalism, illustration to UI design. Originally graduating in graphic design from Dokuz Eylul University, Kongur has worked as an art director in advertising in Turkey. She has continued her career in the UK, where she has worked as a freelance UK correspondent for a Turkish graphic design magazine. She has also worked at TUI in Luton for their UX and Design Team as a UI designer. kongur.co.uk/
Ayşe Şule Yüksel is a doctoral researcher in the Department of Psychology at the University of Exeter. Her love for arts, philosophy and psychology started from a young age. Her interests have mainly focused on exploring the nature of reality, experience and beauty through the medium of art. In order to enhance her intellectual exploration, she began drawing and painting abstract art and neuroart. She is also passionate to share her love for arts and has worked as an art guide in various art exhibitions such as Art Night London Contemporary Art Festival. ay294@exeter.ac.uk
Cansu Saraç Engin was born in Bursa, the heart of çini. She was raised in a house full of art and by an artisan mother. She started helping her mother early on to produce handicrafts including paintings, ceramics, knitting, mosaics. After graduating from Marmara University, she had the chance to work as a trainee in a ceramics studio and the bright and vivid colours of çini always enthralled her. The London based artist continues her artwork semi-professionally and paints colourful hand-made tiles inspired by nature and the colours of Turkey. csaracengin@deloitte.co.uk
Dilber Duygu Temur graduated from Gazi University Visual Arts. After working as a sculptor at the Ankara State Theater for six years, she settled in London. She has organized many exhibitions and workshops here for five years. She continues to share her experiences with people by giving private painting and sculpture lessons and organizing a weekly art club. dilberduygutemur@gmail.com
Eda Özlem Sipahioğlu Diler was born in 1981 in Bolu, Turkey. She pursued a degree in Fine Art and Teaching from Marmara University in 2003 and then began teaching. In 2010, Sipahioğlu Diler completed a master’s degree in art management and in 2015 she decided to stop teaching to concentrate on her own work and moved to the UK. Throughout her career, Sipahioğlu Diler has had her work shown at various exhibitions and taken part in numerous volunteer art projects. www.edaozlemsipahi.co.uk
Ednee Caldin is a French-Turkish artist who moved to the United Kingdom, originally to study then to live. Her interest in photography began during her studies and has since experimented with her film photography. Caldin likes waiting for the right moment to take photographs. Generally, these photographs have burnt corners, or combined two or three different pictures. Taking photograph with a film camera allows her to take a new approach to photography as it requires time, and patience. eden.caldin@gmail.com
Esma Uğurluoğlu was born in Istanbul in 1992. She graduated studied Tezhip (Illumination) at Sakarya University, Faculty of Traditional Turkish Arts. During her undergraduate, she studied bookbinding, miniature, calligraphy, tile art and marbling art at Sümbül Efendi Foundation. She has been living in England since 2016 and has been giving art workshops in various institutions and organizations in England, and sells her works in her own brand called Esmarengiz Design. Esma is an artist who sees art as a common language between cultures and aims to transfer traditional Turkish arts from generation to generation by adding beauty to people’s lives. esmarengizdesign@gmail.com
Eylul Özmen Yuksel was born and trained in Istanbul. She graduated from Marmara University Fine Arts Faculty in 2015. She has participated in many exhibitions and has won awards. Besides her artistic career, Yüksel has been working as a teacher at the Graphic and Photography Department between 2015 and 2018, following the appointment of the Ministry of National Education. She continues her education and art production in London since moving to London in 2018. eylulozmenyuksel@gmail.com
Funda Evsenel has studied Business Administration at the Cardiff Metropolitan University and later completed MBA in International Business at the same university. She currently works as a Senior Account Manager for a well-known Fashion Group. Funda, who had an interest in the art of marbling for many years, and with thanks to her tutor Mr Kozanoğlu and the Yunus Emre Institute, has managed to turn her dreams into reality. Freely bringing together the different elements of life with colours and shapes and giving rhythm to these patterns has become her passion. funda.evsenel@yahoo.co.uk
Müge Koçak was born in Izmir. Graduated from Dokuz Eylül University, Buca Education Faculty of Fine Art Education department. She attained her masters degree from the same university in Education Institute. Koçak was unable to complete her Ph.D. at the same institute because she moved to London in 2010. mugekaymakcan@hotmail.com
Nur Akyıldız is a multidisciplinary artist whose main practices involve installation, video, sculpture, and painting while exploring the themes around nostalgia, relationships, and human emotions. Taking her works to public spaces with live audiences has been very profound in shaping her artistic style and the direction for her future endeavours. She is currently studying towards a Masters of Fine Arts at Anglia Ruskin University in Cambridge. nurdanakyildiz@hotmail.co.uk
Şerife Orak is an artist who has a passion for illumination, marbling, and art in general. Although she was graduated from business management, because of her interest in art, she left her job 8 years ago and she has been making illumination and marbling ever since. She was trained by different illumination and marbling masters in Istanbul and attended Klasik Türk Sanatları Vakfı (Traditional Turkish Arts Foundation) in Üsküdar, İstanbul. She likes to use contemporary artistic techniques alongside traditional Turkish arts. sherife.orak@gmail.com
Sevim Çakır started her working life in Topkapı Palace in 1999 and has worked on various historical restoration and conservation projects in Turkey on tile restoration. In 2001, she started the Topkapı Palace Traditional Turkish Decorative Arts Course under the Ministry of Culture and became a student of Nakkaş Semih İrteş. In 2017, she started her education in the Bursa Faruk Saraç Vocational School of Design, Department of Architectural Restoration where she also taught as a master instructor. cakirsevim@hotmail.com
Sibel Pekgöz was born in Amasya, Turkey, and graduated from GÜMEF Fine Arts department in Nevşehir. Between the years 1994 and 2017 she taught ceramics in Konya and Ankara. During the years she worked at Ankara Olgunlaşma Enstitüsü and she took part in various projects and exhibitions. Pekgöz, who has been living in London since 2017, aims to help bridge traditional Turkish arts into modernity. She especially focuses on İznik ceramics and her hopes to adapt traditional compositions and forms to fit the artistic world today. n.sibelpekgoz@gmail.com
Şöhret Başaran Howells (PhD., MBA, BSc.) was born in Cyprus, but now lives in Exeter, UK. She is an artist, writer and ex-university lecturer who has been practicing art from a young age. She established her studio, ‘The ArtHouse’ in October 2016, where she displays her artworks. She has joined more than twenty five art exhibitions in London, Exeter, Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus and Japan (Mellow Art Special Prize Winner), six of which were solo exhibitions. www.sohretbasaranhowellsart.uk
Tuğçe Karapınar is a mixed media artist based in London, United Kingdom. her artistic practise consists of drawing, painting and photography. Karapınar’s current work focuses on documenting the organic trails of the sea through movement, pattern, texture, and colour. The artist has been experimenting with drawing, painting and digital drawings/collages. www.tugcekarapinar.com
Abdullah Harun İlhan was born in Malatya, Turkey in 1994. After completing his degree in Cinema & Television Department at Bahçeşehir University, İlhan has continued his studies in Filmmaking at New York Film Academy and Bay Atlantic University. His short films and documentaries were shown at several national and international film festivals and he has received several awards including TRT’s “Music Video of the Year” prize for his project “Making a Man”. Currently, he is pursuing his MA in Film Directing at the University of Arts London. aharunilhan@gmail.com
Dr Ümit Demirbağa is a Postdoctoral Research Associate in Health Data Science at the University of Cambridge, UK. He received MSc and PhD degrees in Computer Science from Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK, in 2017 and 2021, respectively. He won a full scholarship from the Ministry of National Education of Turkey for both MSc and PhD studies in the UK. He loves art, travel and exploring new places! He has a real enthusiasm for photography and literature. umitdemirbaga@gmail.com
Ali Ergin was born in 1980, in Ankara, Turkey. He was awarded a scholarship from Domus Academy in Italy, in the Department of Interior Architecture. After completing his master’s degree with a distinction honour, he returned to Turkey where he started working as a part-time instructor at Hacettepe University. Combining the post-realistic perspective of art and space relations, Ergin works in both fields. He is the founder of Ali Ergin Design Studio and continues to paint and carry out concept projects in London. alierg66@gmail.com
Bilal Köse was born in 1992 in Malatya. He graduated from Gaziantep University and has a Bachelor’s Degree in Civil Engineering. Since his childhood, Köse always had a desire to turn towards painting, which he realized he had a talent for. After his studies, he founded Infinite Art Limited, which provides design, tutoring, art, and design consultancy services in London. Together with his wife and young daughter, they create artistic works, exhibit and sell them. @infiniteartltd
Beril Özeroğlu is a UK based, self-taught artist. She has only started painting on canvas two years ago by watching YouTube channels and practising. Then she realized that she really enjoys drawing and has continued painting during the lockdown. Berilozeroglu@hotmail.com
Aynur Kocaoğlu is a glass artist based in London. She has been teaching art therapy to children, adults and people with disabilities since 2014. She believes art is one of the main ways to express emotions and she focuses her art on animals, especially bugs. sunshineglass.london@gmail.com
Dilek Hermenci was born in Mersin in 1979. During her childhood, she enjoyed spending time with her paintings rather than playing outside as many of her equals. During high school, she had private art classes on sketching and perspective, which helped her win a place at Gazi University Ankara. After studying 4 years of applied arts, she taught students at the same university and later worked as an art teacher for 13 years in a well known private college until moving to London. dhermencii@gmail.com
Hatice Gür was born in Turkey in 1979. She graduated from Eskişehir Anadolu University Faculty of Education Fine Arts Education in 2003. She completed her Masters degree at Dumlupınar University, Faculty of Fine Arts, Painting Department in 2010. The artist has received awards in various art competitions and her work is exhibited in public spaces and museums. Gür, who has been working in her own studio in Istanbul since 2014, moved to London in 2019. www.haticegur.co.uk
Arzu Taylan Ersöz was born in Aydın, Turkey in 1976. She has studied at the Department of Art Teaching Graphic Painting at Dokuz Eylül University. She worked as a visual arts instructor in Istanbul and Izmir and has attended various national and international exhibitions. She continues her career and creative journey in London. She is the founder of “Atelier Arzu Limited” company where she offers services like art tutoring, mural painting and art consultancy. arzu@atelierarzu.com
Meltem Bayrak is a graduate of Sakarya University, Faculty of Fine Arts, Department of Traditional Turkish Arts. She started her professional life after her internship at the Restoration and Conservation Central Laboratory of the Ministry of Culture. She worked as an Art Restorer in the restoration and conservation in important structures such as the Topkapı Palace. She moved to London to establish her company in 2019 and continues her artistic life by blending traditional techniques with modern designs. www.petrikor.co.uk
Aynur Elif Boyraz was born in 1992 in Istanbul. She has studied Traditional Turkish Arts at Marmara University. She has worked as a designer in various companies, projects and exhibitions. She currently lives in Cambridge and has worked in various spatial projects at the Zerreden Design and Interior Architecture company that she established together with the interior designer Tuğçe Deveci. aynurelifaydin@gmail.com
Mesude Afzalov was born in 2010 in Newcastle. She is a year seven in secondary school. Afzalov, who has been interested in art and painting since her childhood and has been taking private lessons from Müzehhibe Esma Uğurluoğlu for three years. Her work, which she submitted to the Hobbycraft Young Artists of the Year competition in December 2021, was chosen second in its age category. mesudeafzalov@gmail.com
Eda Ermağan completed a Bachelor of Psychological Counselling (Honours) and obtained her Masters and doctorate degree in Forensic Social Sciences. She later moved to London and started to work as a lecturer. Now, she has provided psychological counselling services at her own practice. She has always been interested in arts, especially photography and paintings. As a professional in psychology, she believes that the art world is a safe place to impress our thoughts and feelings flowingly. ermagan.eda@gmail.com
Sevda Uykan is a multi-cultural contemporary artist. She was born in Istanbul, Turkey, and living in the United Kingdom, she has Yugoslavian roots. In her artworks, she focuses on women and freedom where she challenges the perceptions of fear and the shame surrounding these themes. Uykan’s interest in art was cultivated during her childhood where she learnt to paint from her father and embroidery from her mother. She is studying Transactional Analysis Psychotherapy and believes that art and psychotherapy are linked. www.sevdauykan.com
Demet Tokbay was born in 1978 in Istanbul. She studied at Ege University Ancient Artifact Conservation & Repair Department, where she also taught lessons. Soon, she started designing and manufacturing parchment and, in 2013, she became an apprentice to İsmail Araç, the last karatabak and parchment master of Anatolia. Tokbay continued to work with her master until she settled in England and founded Mavi Dükkan, her own workshop and tannery. She continues to produce and work on parchment at her workshop in North Elmham. dmtsglm@gmail.com
Vedia Asım was born in 1957, Nicosia, Cyprus and graduated from Türk Maarif Koleji. She has lived in the UK since 1976 and acquired Bsc in STS Studies. She is currently working in EAL Department of a secondary school. Since the first lockdown, watercolour painting has become her hobby. It gives her joy and inner peace. Her paintings are usually intuitive and she is inclined to paint in abstract or semi-abstract styles and experiments with different mediums and textures. @vasim.va97
Ayşe Özlem Yüksel has had a passion for the art of marble painting for more than 18 years. Through the fluidity of its shapes and rich tradition engraved in its spiritual nature, Yüksel practices the art of marble painting in a creative way to reflect her meditations on life. She has held various exhibitions in London and various cities in Turkey and currently she leads workshops for enthusiastic adults who would like to express themselves freely in this meditative art form, art students or first-time artists. belenartltd@gmail.com
Ayşegül Coles was born in Merzifon, Turkey. She completed her BA in Sculpture, and MA in History of Art & Sculpture at the Mimar Sinan Academy of Fine Art. Coles lives in the coastal town of Whitstable where the extraordinary quality of the area’s northern light provides ongoing inspiration. She uses a variety of materials, including stone, clay and wood from her charming sea-facing studio. In her paintings she uses minimal shapes and form allowing their bold colours to provide dynamism, energy and a necessary space to communicate her perception and appreciation of the natural world. AysegulColes@icloud.com
İpek Albayrak Townsend was born in Ankara in 1975. Art has been an important tool for her to express herself since she was very young. She got her bachelor’s degree from Marmara University Painting Teaching Department, Fine Arts Department in 1998. After graduating, Townsend worked as a designer in fashion and textile manufacturing companies in Istanbul/Turkey. She came to England in 2002. She likes to communicate human emotions through her artworks. www.silktownsart.com
Mehmet Özmen, born in 1977 in Ankara, graduated from Hacettepe University Fine Arts Faculty Painting Department in 2004, worked as a painting teacher in various associations and art centers. In 2006 and 2007, he had his first personal exhibition at Çankaya Municipality Contemporary Arts Center, between 2008 and 2020. He has organized various group exhibitions and participated in more than 10 exhibitions with his series. Özmen moved to Liverpool in 2020 and continues my art studies. www.brutart.co.uk
Merve Kahraman was born in 1997 in Çorlu,Tekirdağ. In 2015, she graduated from Tekirdağ Fine Arts High School. In 2019, she graduated from Dokuz Eylül University, Department of Art Education. She is currently studying for a Masters degree at Dokuz Eylül University, Department of Art Education. She participated in many national and international group exhibitions. In 2021, she participated in the symposium titled ‘The Power of Art’ organized by Dokuz Eylül University. She has resided in London since 2020. mervekahraman716@gmail.com
Meryem Küçük was born in Edirne, northwest of Turkey, and moved to the UK early in her childhood. Raised in a family which highlighted the importance of valuing the culture she originated from, Küçük grew up deep entrenched in Turkish language and art. She recently History and International Relations graduate from King’s College London and works in the Arts and Culture for Turkish organisations. Loving art from a young age, Küçük has been painting, carving, printing and taking photographs for as long as she can remember. meryemnkucuk@gmail.com
Mine Bayar was born in Limasol, Cyprus, and lives in London. She is a retired mathematics teacher who started painting as a hobby in 2015. She is a self-taught artist. Mine has a passion for abstract painting where she experiments with dark colours and enjoys creating dramatic shapes. Her unique style of painting expresses her emotions using acrylic paint on canvas. minebayar@hotmail.com
Recep Yıldırım has lived in the UK for 18 years and runs his own business. In his spare time, he writes and creates mosaics. Yıldırım also tries to teach the technique of how to make mosaic and recycle the materials used to his kids. yildirimrec@hotmail.com
Refie Nureddin Rufi completed her undergraduate education at Marmara University in Turkey and completed her master’s degree at Yeditepe University and participated in various galleried group exhibitions in Istanbul. She continues with her studies. gunesrefiye@gmail.com
Rina Bakış was born in Istanbul. She later moved to South Africa where she worked for the French Embassy and later for the Turkish Embassy in Pretoria. During her stay in South Africa, Rina took part in many exhibitions. She has been living in London since 2004 and participated in over 40 solo and group exhibitions www.rinabakis.co.uk
Sanem Güvercin is an Art Teacher with a degree from Ondokuz Mayıs University in Turkey. Güvercin moved to London 13 years ago and has continued to teach Art to children and produce both classical and contemporary art pieces. She has been a part of exhibitions and displays in the UK, promoting ideas and art from a modern Turkish women’s perspective. sanemartdesign@gmail.com
Serpil Çalışkan was born in Istanbul in 1978. She graduated from Ege University Restoration and Conservation Department and studied a Historical Metal work course at Westdean College in England. During the course, Çalışkan received the Harold Davies price from The British Antique Dealers’ Association (BADA). A historical metal conservator, she also took silversmithing and blacksmithing courses. serpilcaliskan6@yahoo.com
Soyut Özmen was born in Ankara in 2011. Although he has no artistic education, he paints as a hobby and enjoys it. In his work, he expresses his views about life.
Tuğçe Özgelen is a mandala artist who studied Economics at Ege University and has a master’s degree from Istanbul University, Department of Marketing. For nearly a decade of working as a product manager, she decided to advance her career in the field of art with Mandala art. She studied at a private art academy and then organized several workshops to introduce this art in Turkey. She created an art form called “Zendala” which is a blend of Mandala and Zentangle arts. www.zendalart.com
Zerrin Bucaklı is a landscape architect who started to study art in highschool with her art teacher Süleyman Gürsoy. After a 25 year break she started to paint again in her teacher, Asuman Savuk’s, Art Studio. She wants to improve in this field even as she claims to be amateur. She had a chance to display her works in a solo exhibition called “my Purity and Wisdom”. zerrinbucakli@gmail.com
Gita Serin was born in Urumiye, Iran in 1973, and she moved to Turkey in the year 2000. Her interest in art began when she took ceramics/çini courses, the traditional Turkish art, in 2010. In time, she expanded her work to paper relief, wood and polyester painting, Kintsugi, epoxy, and one stroke painting. Serin continues to display her pieces in various art exhibitions. @softhobb
Melissa Vipritskaya Topal is a Russian – Turkish contemporary artist working in London. She grew up in Moscow in an international family, surrounded by art, music, and theatre. As an artist, Topal was shaped by several key factors such as identity and the multiculturalism of the environments where she developed as a person. She started her professional creative career in 2020 and recently enrolled in UAL Central Saint Martins where she is studying Fine Art. Melissa’s art is her way to self-discovery as well as a voyage in her inner self meant to reproduce her memories, feelings and thoughts. She participated in numerous different exhibitions in London. melissavtopal@gmail.com
Sevim Gelgeç is a 52-year-old working in finance. She has been drawing and painting for the past 4 years in her time as she finds painting and drawing enjoyable. Gelgeç gets her inspiration from nature and all great artists. She finds that painting is a beautiful adventure that takes the artist to place where they can find tranquility and happiness. sevierl@yahoo.com
Members of the Jury
Consul General Atahan was born in Ankara in 1978. He graduated from the Middle East Technical University, Faculty of Economics and Administrative Sciences, Department of International Relations in 2001. He obtained his MA in International Relations from the University of Birmingham in 2002. He joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Turkey in 2003. He served in Deputy Directorates of NATO, Cultural Affairs, Security, Immigration, Asylum and Visa in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Consul General Atahan was appointed as Third Secretary to the Turkish Embassy in Nairobi, as Vice Consul to the Turkish Consulate General in Cologne and as Counsellor to the Turkish Embassies in Beirut and the Hague between 2005-2018.
Since September 15th 2020, he has been serving as the Turkish Consul General in London.
Dr Mehmet Karakuş was born in Amasya in 1968. He graduated from Istanbul University, Faculty of Political Sciences, Department of Public Administration. He completed his MA in European Union Studies and his PhD in Politics at Newcastle University in England. He was a visiting researcher at the same university for a while. He worked as a director and education consultant in various non-governmental organizations . Dr Karakus has been working as Director at Yunus Emre Institute in London since 2016.
Zuhal Şeker began her career in Marketing and Public Relations Department at Yapı Kredi Insurance. Following that, she worked as the Head of the Corporate Communications and CEO office member at Turkcell from 2002 to 2006. In 2006, Zuhal Şeker joined Yıldız Holding in 2006 as the General Manager, Corporate Communications. She established an in-house PR agency that supported all the of the brands of Yıldız Holding and also corporate affairs. Zuhal was appointed as the Chief Corporate Communications Officer in 2015. She has been building the corporate awareness and reputation worldwide on pladis (World’s 3rd biscuit company) and creating strategic communications plans in corporate affairs and brand building and positioning; executive communications, message development; stakeholder engagement; media relations, influencer engagement, digital/social communications, thought leadership, events, financial communications. and issues management She manages global and cross-functional teams and global PR agencies. She is also a communications advisor to Group Chairman, pladis CEO, senior leadership. Her work on corporate identity for pladis received award from the international press. She enjoys walking, spending time with family and friends, meeting new people; following her son’s music taste.
Nilay İslek is an award-winning and very accomplished photographer! Born and educated in İzmir, Turkey, Nilay attended Dokuz Eylül University Fine Art Faculty and attained a Master’s degree same faculty. Having started with advertising Photography in 1995, Nilay’s first important international event was the Universiade 2005 Izmir Summer Plays where she was a member of the editorial board. Soon after, she participated in several further international events and projects all the while offering various types of art education programs in her art atelier in Izmir, Artlens Visual Culture and Photography Atelier. In 2016, alongside her other international feats, Nilay was entitled for the international title of Fujifilm “X-Photographer” as the first woman photographer from Turkey, gave “Basic Photography Courses” in Fujifilm Education Centre in Izmir and continued her academic career. Nilay İşlek settled in London in 2018 by qualifying for the Artist Visa, which is given to about 40 people from around the world every year and has established a new branch of her atelier “Artlens London/ @artlens_london”
Kübra Müjde is the founder of the QBİCART International Art School. She is a PhD student, art educator, artist, and museum guide. She is inspired by nature, life and travelling. She is from mesopotamia. Now lives in the UK.
Her aim in life is “To reintroduce art to society with art perception ” and increase awareness of the existence of art in every experience people encounter. For almost twelve years, she has been organizing traveling workshops, museum meetings and one-on-one artistic journeys with children of different nationalities.
She also takes part in many volunteer art platforms as an educator, artist and jurist. She hopes to turn the unique works of art of the hundreds of people she has met to into a permanent collection on both physical and digital platforms.
www.kubramujde.co.uk
Nagihan Seymour is a UK based Turkish artist. Although she is a materials engineer, she has been interested in art since her university years, having studied traditional arts privately in her home city of Istanbul, Turkey. During these studies she learned the tradition and techniques involved in this discipline.
Manuscript illumination was the major part of her studies, and as her style has developed she started to combine sacred geometry with classic illumination, putting a modern twist on an ancient art form. She was also interested in traditional Iznik cini ceramic painting and she is applying her patterns on Iznik ceramics and firing them in her kiln at her studio in Egham.
Nagihan works as a full-time artist joining art fairs in the UK and working on commissions. Please see Nagihan’s websites for paintings and ceramics at: https://www.nagihanseymour.com and www.nagihanseymourceramics.com
Sümer Erek was born in Limassol, Cyprus. With the 1974 war, he had to migrate north of the island. His art education which was started in Mimar Sinan Üniversitesi but not continued was completed in England with his graduation in 1983 from the sculpture department of St.Martin’s School of Art. He completed two more years of postgraduate studies at the same university. In 2008, he studied master’s in Transnational Art, Identity and Nation (TRAIN) at the University of the Arts, London.
He continues to work and live in the UK while maintaining the identity of an independent artist outside of the mainstream, producing works from painting to installation and video to performance by bringing interdisciplinary art practice, life experiences to the center of his art production. He has participated, exhibited and created projects in many countries.
Thanks to the team at Yunus Emre Institute in London:
Project Coordinator | Ayşe Gökçen Yücel
Editor | Meryem Küçük
Editor | Şehribanu Turan
Administrator | Ayşe Kaya
Administrator | Elif Uysal
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