Biography
Fevzi Tüfekçi was born in Prizren in 1948. After completing his primary and secondary education, he graduated from the Painting Department of the Pristina Pedagogical College. He entered the Istanbul State Academy of Fine Arts, Department of Painting, in 1971, graduating from the Bedri Rahmi Eyuboğlu Studio in 1975. In 1976, he was elected a member of the Kosovo (and Yugoslavia) Visual Artists Union. For many years, he worked as a painter-conservator at the Prizren Municipality Cultural Monuments Protection Agency while continuing his artistic work. During this period, he participated in all domestic and international exhibitions organized by the Kosovo Visual Artists Union. Besides his painting, he also designed book and art magazine covers and emblems. In 1992, he settled in Turkey and began teaching at Mimar Sinan University of Fine Arts. He shifted his artistic activity more towards engraving. He trained many students and established the "Atelier A La Turka Engraving Workshop," open to artists. He contributed to the development and dissemination of printmaking in Turkey by organizing several large-scale printmaking exhibitions. He never compromised on his artistic vision. In his abstract compositions, shaped according to the principles of harmony and balance, the transformation of calligraphic elements into visual elements always prevailed. Although he did not hold many solo exhibitions, he participated in numerous national and international group exhibitions. He is the recipient of eight awards in total, three of which are state awards, in Kosovo and Turkey. His works are in institutions and collections in many countries, and he is featured in countless exhibition catalogs, the Encyclopedia of Turkish Plastic Artists, and the Encyclopedia of Contemporary Kosovar Artists. He continues his work in his studio in Istanbul. Solo Exhibitions: 1967. Gazi Mehmet Pasha Hammam, Prizren; 1972. Skopje People's Theatre, Skopje, Macedonia; 1977. Prizren Cultural Center, Prizren, Yugoslavia; 1985. Tualsan Art Gallery, Istanbul. 1986 Culture House, Kosovska Mitrovica, Yugoslavia. 1992 Baldem Art Gallery, Istanbul. 1998 Nelli Art House, Istanbul. 2001 Karşı Art Works, Istanbul. 2015 Pristina Faculty of Arts, Pristina, Kosovo. 2022 Fular’t Art Gallery, Istanbul. Awards: 1979 ‘Prizren Union’ Art Gallery Second Prize. 1984 Kosovo Visual Artists Union Engraving Award. 1985 Viking Printmaking Third Prize Exhibition, Honorable Mention. 1986 Viking Printmaking Fourth Prize Exhibition, Honorable Mention. 1994 55th State Printmaking Competition, Honorable Mention. 1995 56th State Printmaking Competition, Achievement Award. 2000 61st State Printmaking Competition, Achievement Award. 2015. 19th International Suleyman Brina Balkan Turkish Culture Service Award. 2023. Bal-Tam (Balkan Turkish Studies Center) Award. Some institutions where the artist's works are located: Cultural Monuments Protection Agency, Prizren, Yugoslavia. Turkish Embassy in Macedonia, Skopje, Macedonia. Kosovo Contemporary Art Gallery, Pristina, Yugoslavia. Prizren Union Museum, Prizren, Kosovo. Turkish Ministry of Culture. ‘Tan’G.Y.K., Pristina, Yugoslavia. Demirbank T.A.Ş. Balıkesir Contemporary Arts Museum, Doğuş University, Istanbul. IMOGA (Istanbul Graphic Arts Museum), Yunus Emre Cultural Center, Pristina. İlhan Koman Sculpture and Painting Museum, Edirne. Various private institutions and collections in Yugoslavia and Turkey.
