The Millî Reasürans Art Gallery is exhibiting the works of sculptor Kuzgun Acar, one of the leading artists of the post-1950s generation, whom we lost in 1976, between September 30 and October 30, 1997.

Born in Istanbul in 1928, Kuzgun Acar completed his high school education under difficult circumstances. In 1949, he entered the Sculpture Department of the State Academy of Fine Arts, becoming a student first of Rudolf Belling and then of Hadi Bara. While still a student, he was involved with Adalet Cimcoz's Maya Art Gallery.

In 1961, he won first prize at the Paris International Young Artists Biennial at the age of 33. He remained in Paris with a scholarship from the Biennial and exhibited his sculptures at the Paris Museum of Modern Art in 1962. That same year, he won first prize at the 23rd State Painting and Sculpture Exhibition.

Upon returning to Turkey, the artist strived to incorporate sculpture as a visual element into the large office buildings and hotels that were being constructed at the time. In 1966, he created a 13-meter-tall, 6-meter-wide wall sculpture using iron on the facade of the Emek Office Building, Turkey's first skyscraper, located in Ankara's Kızılay Square. This sculpture, one of his most important works, which he titled "Turkey," was dismantled in 1974 and replaced with an advertising billboard. According to press reports, the sculpture was placed in a warehouse and later disappeared.

In the vibrant atmosphere of 1968, he created masks for street theater. In 1975, he made masks for Mehmet Ulusoy's production of "The Caucasian Chalk Circle" at the Freedom Theatre in Paris. He became interested in puppet theater and turned to filmmaking. He made some documentaries, but did not complete them.

He won a competition for a wall sculpture for the Textile Merchants' Bazaar in Istanbul. In 1973, as part of the 50th anniversary celebrations of the Republic, he created a sculpture for Gülhane Park. This sculpture was later removed and lost. In 1974, he created a large wall sculpture for the Gönen facilities of the Mining Workers' Union. However, when the union was closed down following the 1980 military coup, the sculpture was removed. It was only thanks to the efforts of a worker at the facilities that the sculpture was preserved, allowing it to be returned to its original location through this exhibition. In 1975, a sculpture event was organized as part of the "Antalya Art Festival" prepared by the Antalya Municipality. Kuzgun Acar, participating in the event, created the "Hand" sculpture in memory of Haşim İşcan.

On February 2, 1976, he fell from a ladder in his workshop and died of a cerebral hemorrhage. This exhibition, the first comprehensive exhibition held after his death, will be presented to the public along with a book.