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CONTEMPORARY TURKISH PAINTERS

Süleyman Karakul

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  • On 2 September 2025

Who is Süleyman Karakul? (1952-Sivas)

Born in 1952 in the village of E. Hüyük, Şarkışla, Sivas, Süleyman Karakul graduated from the Painting Department of the Gazi Education Institute in 1974. He completed his undergraduate studies in the Graphic Arts Department of the Faculty of Education at Gazi University in 1986. After many years as an art teacher, the artist retired in 2001 and also worked in advertising graphics, book and magazine cover designs, and caricature.
The artist has participated in numerous group exhibitions and has held 56 (fifty-six) solo exhibitions. He received the 68’liler FOUNDATION 30th Anniversary Events Painting Labor Award, the SAKÜDER 2015 Special Art Award, the Turkish Pharmacists Association 60th Anniversary Jury Special Award, and the 3rd Prize in the Machinery Specialized Organized Industrial Zone “100th Anniversary of the Republic” Painting Competition. The artist, whose works are in public and private collections, currently continues to work in his own workshop in Ankara.

Art Perspective;

I was born in 1952 in the village of E. Hüyük in Şarkışla, a child in the “Wildflowers” class, as Ceyhun Atıf Kansu called them. I am one of the lucky children who, like them, persevered against difficult conditions and survived. I finished primary school by writing and drawing in yellow-leafed notebooks with molasses, heating the school with wood and dung we brought from home, and painting our blackboards with a mixture of stove soot and egg whites, all in a room with three classrooms. I continued my post-primary education in Sivas. I graduated from Kongre High School, breathing in Atatürk. The first oil painting I did in art class was İbrahim Çallı’s portrait of Atatürk. My teacher, finding it very successful and presenting it to the school principal, was the first significant event that brought painting into my life. I entered the Gazi Education Institute’s graphics department in 1971, and with the contributions of some of the most prominent artists and educators of the time, I graduated in 1974. I continued my undergraduate studies in 1987. After working as an art teacher in various regions of the country, I retired in 2001.

The unique conditions of my childhood environment, the relationships between people and nature, left significant marks on me. The richness of essential concepts like color, movement, rhythm, light and shadow, and depth—essential to painting—and the existence of resilient people integrated with these concepts make this world very important to me. I titled my last exhibition "Resistant Movements." With this title, I aimed to capture all the resisting people of villages and cities, focusing on social, cultural, and political events, and to leave a historical record. Explaining something isn't necessarily crucial; what matters is being able to convey it in a uniquely developed language. This, I believe, is where the problematic of art begins. To this end, this language can be developed through a thorough understanding of art history, keen observation, and disciplined study. I've never viewed painting as a decorative element. Adopting Picasso's approach, I've embraced painting not as a decorative tool, but as a weapon of struggle. I believe that using this weapon against all obstacles to social development is the most important duty of a true artist.

Süleyman KARAKUL
March 2015/Saküder 10th Year Special Art Award Catalogue Article

Solo Exhibitions;

1991 Metropolitan Municipality Art Gallery, Ankara
1993 Akbank Kızılay Art Gallery, Ankara
1994 Sappho Art Gallery, Ankara
1995 Vakıfbank Köroğlu Art Gallery, Ankara
1996 Ziraat Culture Center, Ankara
1996 33rd Hacıbektaş Culture and Art Events, Hacıbektaş
1997 Yaşar Art Gallery, Ankara
1998 Şekerbank Ömer Sunar Art Gallery, Ankara
2000 Atatürk Culture Center, Ankara
2000 2nd Bayat Festival, Afyon
2000 International Congress of Anatolian Beliefs, Ürgüp
2000 Başak Sigorta Art Gallery, Ankara
2001 Bilkent Dam Art Gallery, Ankara
2002 Development Bank Art Gallery, Ankara
2003 İş Art Gallery, Izmir
2003 2nd International Antalya Painting Festival - ANTALYA
2004 İlayda Art Gallery - ANKARA
2005 23rd University Art Festival - İZMİR
2005 ARTFORUM Ankara Plastic Arts Fair - ANKARA
2006 T.C. Ziraat Bank Tünel Art Gallery - ISTANBUL
2006 ARTFORM 2nd Ankara Plastic Arts Fair - ANKARA
2007 Beyaz Art Gallery - ANKARA
2007 ANKART Ankara Art Fair - ANKARA
2008 Alpman Art Gallery - ANKARA
2008 Chamber of Commerce and Industry Art Gallery - MERSİN
2008 Jazz Art Center and Gallery - BODRUM
2008 Piazza Art Gallery - ISTANBUL
2009 Sanko Art Gallery - GAZİANTEP
2010 Vakıfbank Art Gallery - ANKARA
2011 G&G Art Gallery - ANKARA
2011 Akropol Art Gallery – ALANYA
2012 ANKART Ankara Art Fair – ANKARA
2012 Cumhuriyet Cultural Center - ANKARA
2013 Yağmur Art Gallery - ANKARA
2014 Gözde Art Gallery - ANKARA
2014 Mim Hotel Gallery - ISTANBUL
2016 Gözde Art Gallery - ANKARA
2016 Tünel Art Gallery - ISTANBUL
2017 Solingen State Museum - GERMANY
2017 Aşık Veysel Cultural Center – ŞARKIŞLA
2017 Lyon International Art Festival - FRANCE
2017 Sevgi Art Gallery – ANKARA
2018 ARTANKARA Art Fair - ANKARA
2019 ARTANKARA Art Fair – ANKARA
2019 Sevgi Art Gallery – ANKARA
2020 Ellen Art Gallery – ISTANBUL
2020 ARTANKARA Art Fair – ANKARA
2021 Kent Gallery – ANKARA
2021 Artankara Art Fair - ANKARA
2022 Artcontact Art Fair - ISTANBUL
2022 Valör Art Gallery - ANKARA
2023 Gallery Kambur - ISTANBUL
2023 Artankara Art Fair - ANKARA
2023 Artcontact Art Fair - ISTANBUL
2023 Sevgi Art Gallery - ANKARA

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