Meet Artist-in-Residence Onur Hastürk

Onur Hastürk was born in 1983 in the seaside city of Mersin in southern Turkey. Hastürk’s artistic journey has embraced the generative and transformative energies of adaptation.

He completed his bachelor’s degree in Traditional Turkish Arts, specializing in gilding and miniature painting. His deep interest in handmade manuscripts led him to Istanbul in 2012, where he earned a master’s degree at Marmara University’s Institute of Fine Arts. His thesis focused on figural analysis in Ottoman illustrated manuscripts housed in Istanbul’s historic Suleymaniye Library.

Throughout his education, Hastürk brought together intensive studies of one of the most established Eastern art forms, miniature painting, with ongoing research in the field of international contemporary art. In the summer of 2010, he traveled to New York for new experiences and artistic research. In the 2013/2014 academic year, he studied art and design at the Accademia di Belle Arti di Firenze.

His works have been exhibited both in Turkey and internationally, including in Düsseldorf, Dubai, Milan, Rome, Porto, and London. Assimilation marked the artist’s first solo exhibition in Germany, followed by his first solo exhibition in Istanbul, and stands as the most comprehensive display of his work to date. Onur Hastürk lives and works in Istanbul.

On his current residency, he said:

In my recent work, I merge the traditional art of Eastern miniatures with contemporary and Queer themes, adopting an interdisciplinary approach that deeply examines concepts of power, obedience, authority, and aesthetics. During my residency at Tom of Finland Foundation,  I aim to rediscover notions of belonging, desire, and erotic art on a global scale, creating new works that challenge these ideas from an international perspective. Moving beyond an artistic approach shaped in the shadow of repression and censorship, I will use this creative period in Los Angeles to explore body politics and dynamics of authority through bold, thought-provoking narratives that intertwine cultural histories with contemporary Queer expression.

 

Published: 13th September 2025

Categorised in: News