İrfan Dönmez

Who is İrfan Dönmez? (1980-Eskişehir)

He was born in Eskişehir in 1980. He completed his undergraduate education in Anadolu University, Faculty of Education, Fine Arts Education Program in 2003. He completed his graduate education in the Print Arts Program of the same university, Institute of Social Sciences in 2008. He gave part-time lectures in the Painting Department of Kütahya Dumlupınar University, Faculty of Fine Arts between 2008-2010. In 2010, he was appointed as a lecturer in Bilecik Şeyh Edebali University Bozüyük Vocational School. In 2015, he was accepted to the ‘Young Generation Contemporary Artists from Turkey’ exhibition organized by Sainte Pulcherie French High School Od’A-Ouvroir D’Art Gallery. Again in the same year, he was awarded the Success Award in the 15th Şefik Bursalı Painting Competition and Young Contemporary Art Project Competition. In 2016, he received his Proficiency in Art in the Painting Program of Gazi University, Institute of Fine Arts. He was awarded the Success Award in DYO Painting Competitions in 2020 and 2022. In 2021, he opened his solo exhibition titled ‘In the Fog’ in Vienna upon the invitation of the Austrian Ministry of Culture. The artist currently serves as a faculty member at Bilecik Şeyh Edebali University, Faculty of Fine Arts and Design, Department of Painting.

Art Perspective;

Born in Eskişehir in 1980, İrfan Dönmez received his Painting and Postgraduate Printmaking Education at Anadolu University, Faculty of Education. Dönmez, who frequently uses mixed media and experimental materials in his works, influenced by his printing arts education in addition to his painting education, often pursues a canvas painting in the range of painting and graphics, outside of conventional painting/painting methods. Dönmez tries to visualize memory or the way it works. While doing this, he shapes the dark areas of memory, the gaps, disconnections and flaws of remembrance by stacking the images he uses in the form of cuts. Black and white or strong color contrasts with passport photos, the plastic interpretation of the instantaneous ‘I’ image and the cartography of memory push the viewer into an uncontainable and incomprehensible act of remembering. The artist, who does not base his own style solely on plastic foundations and creates an original painting language with the plurality of shaping techniques he uses, continues his work in his studio in Eskişehir.