Timur Çelik, born 1960 in Gümüşhane (Turkey) is primarely known for his large format portraits. With his „hyperrealistic“ style he observes and comments political struggles and personal greatness under conditions of state repression as well as the harship of living in exile. He created the series „Eye Witness“ from collected impressions of a journey in 2014 trough the kurdish territories in Turkey. The subjects of his realistic portraits are artists, intellectuals and human rights activists from Turkey, including personalities like Helin Bölek, Eren Keskin and Osman Kavala.
Çelik studied art at Marmara University in Istanbul in the early 1980s. Since then he took part in group exhibitions, for instance in the Max Liebermann Haus, Berlin and the Contemporary Art Center, Ankara. He also presented his works in numerous solo exhibitions in Istanbul, Ankara and Berlin, not least at the Künstlerhaus Bethanien.
