Fikret Otyam

He began his career in journalism before moving to painting and photography. He has worked in Son Saat, Dünya, Akın, Ulus, Kudret and Cumhuriyet newspapers. Recently, he wrote a weekly column for the Aydınlık daily. He made a name for himself with his series of interviews with ordinary people of southeastern and eastern Turkey. Those interviews were later published as books. After his retirement in 1979, he moved to his farm in Antalya where he started focusing more on his paintings. His painting style was largely influenced by artists Turgut Zaim, Namık İsmail and Bedri Rahmi Eyüboğlu. Depictions of veiled Anatolian women and goats are two figures that appear frequently in his paintings. After his first exhibition in 1952, Otyam held more than 30 exhibitions in Turkey and abroad, and his works were included in the collections of foreign museums and private collectors. He died of renal failure at Antalya on August 9, 2015, at the age of 88.

• Name — Fikret Otyam • Born — December 19, 1926 • Birthplace — Aksaray, Aksaray Province, Turkey • Died — 9 August 2015 • Place of death — Antalya, Turkey • Resting Place — Hacıbektaş, Nevşehir • Education — Arts • Alma Mater — Academy of Fine Arts in Istanbul • Occupation — Painter, journalist • Spouse — Filiz Otyam (married 1977)