COPLU

Coplu’s journey as an artist began when he was a young child. His mother, a weaver,

taught him about figures, the meanings of patterns and also the profound, emotional

effectiveness of colour.

His formative years were periods of optimism, although the challenges and changes in his

world gave him the urge to paint, simply for freedom of expression. His first tool was a

carved stick that he used while he was studying to become a mining engineer.

“My heart could not remain on my studying while my mind was occupied with political

issues. I was witnessing a huge turmoil in my environment and documenting it through

my art. Soon art became more important to me than the study of rocks and soil.”

Coplu’s work is a mirror that reflects the feelings, beliefs, fears and experiences that we

all share in life. The subjects of his paintings are the relationships between ourselves, and

the environments we are connected to. His figures are often on the edge of contrasting

emotions such as hope and despair, joy and pain, love and hate.

Humour and colour are key elements in his paintings. He always looks at the funny side

of things, finding it one of the most effective ways to open minds. He grew up surrounded

by wide cultural diversities where all feelings and expressions were represented by colours,

and he combines these creative elements in a simple, instinctive way so they can strike a

chord with anyone.

Born in the Turkish town of Ushak, Coplu is now based in Vancouver, Canada. Following

his first art exhibition in 1981 he has become a well-loved and widely collected artist,

exhibiting throughout Europe, North America and Japan. His works have been published

in numerous magazines, newspapers and books across the world.