| Art Profile |
: |
Prof. Dr. Devrim Erbil was born in Uşak in 1937. He was enrolled in the painting department of the State Academy of Fine Art in Istanbul in 1955. He studied first in the academy′s Gallery section under Halil Dikmen and later in the studio of Bedri Rahmi Eyüboğlu. In 1959, he founded the Soyutçu 7′ler (Seven Abstractionists) group. After graduating from the academy′s painting department, he joined the academy in 1962 as a teaching assistant, undertaking duties in the studios of Bedri Rahmi Eyüpoğlu, Cemal Tollu, and Cevat Dereli. In 1963, Erbil founded the Mavi (Blue) group in association with Tülay Tura, Altan Gürman, Adnan Çöker and Sarkis. In 1965, Erbil was awarded an art scholarship by Spanish Government and began studying in Madrid and Barcelona. He continued his studies in Paris and London. In 1968, he was elected "young artist of the year" in Turkey. In 1969, He became president of the Turkish Association of Contemporary Artists. He became an associate Professor at the Academy in 1970. In 1975, he served as the president of the Association of Visual Artists.
Devrim Erbil was appointed director of the Istanbul Museum of Painting and Sculpture in 1979. In 1981, he became a full Professor at the Academy and became chairman of the Department of Painting at Mimar Sinan University in 1985. He was appointed to the position of chairman at the Department of Painting, Yıldız University in 1988, and to that of assistant of Dean at the Faculty of Fine Arts, Mimar Sinan University in 1990. He is currently a member of the Department of Painting of the Faculty of Fine Arts at Mimar Sinan University. Erbil was awarded the title "State Artist" in 1991.
Erbil′s works have been shown frequently in joint exhibitions in Turkey and abroad. His works have also displayed in exhibitions of Turkish art conducted in other countries and has served as commissioner for such shows held in Alexandria, Belgrade, Sofia, and Kuwait. He has delivered lectures and published articles on the art subject.
Works by the artist have been selected for inclusion in the collection of the state museums of Painting and Sculpture in Ankara, Istanbul and Izmir. Works by him are also at the Museum of Modern Art in Bucharest, at the Banja Luca Umjetnicka Gallery, in Ben and Abby Grey Foundation Collection, the Ankara National Library Collection, and in a number of public and private collections in Turkey and abroad. |
