The Millî Reasürans Art Gallery opens its 50th exhibition in 2002 with an exhibition of Orhan Peker. The gallery had opened in 1994 with an exhibition by Orhan Peker. The gallery manager and curator of the exhibition, Amelie Edgü, stated that the new Orhan Peker exhibition was created from over 300 paintings, including works that have never been exhibited before, selected after seven years of research. Additionally, the exhibition will feature photographs of Orhan Peker taken by Ara Güler between 1940 and 1978. A new book has been published in connection with the exhibition, including an essay by Turan Erol, which evaluates Orhan Peker and discusses his place in Turkish painting, as well as writings by Ferit Edgü on three of the artist’s paintings.
Believe in Sincerity First
Orhan Peker, one of the original artists of Turkish painting, was born in 1927 in Trabzon and passed away in 1978 at the age of 51. Even as a middle school student, he wanted to attend the Academy and become a painter, but at his family’s request, he attended school at Sankt-Georg in Istanbul. In 1944, he entered the Academy and studied in Bedri Rahmi’s workshop. His close friend, Turan Erol, says, “When he started the Academy, he was already a painter.” These were the years when Turkish artists, beyond concerns with form, began to search for their own styles and unique expression. New groups were being formed. Even as a student, Orhan Peker founded the "Onlar Grubu" (They Group) with his friends and held exhibitions. After graduating from the Academy in 1951, he worked with director Max Meinecke at the Istanbul City Theatre. His work there took him to various European cities, where he visited museums and saw many works that had fascinated him. In 1954, he held his first solo exhibition in Istanbul, where he attracted attention with his paintings based on daily life and interpreted in a unique way. In 1956, the book *Orhan Peker* was published with a foreword by Adnan Benk.
That same year, he attended Kokoschka’s “Summer Academy” in Vienna. He worked in Paris, Hamburg, and Munich. In 1959, he settled in Ankara and began working at the Ministry of Tourism. In 1963, the Ministry of Tourism sent him to Spain for a year, where he gathered his impressions in a work titled *Spain Notebook*. In 1965, he won the First Prize at the 26th State Painting and Sculpture Exhibition with his painting *White Horses*, and in 1972, he was named "Artist of the Year." He continued to hold solo exhibitions and participate in group exhibitions. In 1969, his poster created with architect Ragıp Uluç for the Expo 70 in Japan won first place, and he traveled to Japan. In 1970, he won the *TRT Painting and Sculpture Competition Award*. In 1971, he held his first international exhibition in Brussels at Galerie sans Frontières. In 1972, he went back to Europe, working in Paris, Brussels, Cologne, and Munich. In 1975, he moved to Istanbul, and later began living in Ayvalık. His exhibition at the Bedri Rahmi Art Gallery in 1978 was his final artistic activity. He passed away on May 29, 1978.