As the Diyarbakır Arts Center enters its eighth year, it kicked off the season by hosting the ‘Techniques and Periods’ exhibition by Devrim Erbil, who is celebrating his 50th year of artistic production. Erbil, who reflects on the diverse cultures and identities in Anatolia through his unique expression, builds his body of work on the aesthetic values created by diverse social strata and cultural dynamics. Having made important contributions to the formation of the painting tradition in Turkey during his fifty-year art journey and holding over eighty personal exhibitions since 1956, Erbil also served as a curator for many exhibitions representing Turkey both domestically and abroad, including Alexandria, Belgrade, Sofia, and Kuwait City.

In conjunction with the highly appreciated ‘Techniques and Periods’ exhibition, the artist also held a talk titled ‘Arts and Anatolian Enlightenment’. While addressing the connections between Eastern and Western arts and culture, Erbil also presented examples of artistic productions of people from different cultural identities on Anatolian lands, indicating that art will achieve its true authenticity and enrichment through interaction. Believing that cultures are transferred through common collective genes, Erbil stated that “each culture is strong within its own values. They become richer as they influence each other.”