Gulay Alpay
ARTIST BIO
Gulay Alpay is a Turkish & Canadian artist practicing interdisciplinary art. Completed a BFA and MFA in Painting at Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University in Ä°stanbul, Türkiye. More recently, she completed a certificate in Visual and Digital Arts from Humber College, and she continues her education at OCAD University Indigenous Art and Culture. She created many works in a non-traditional way and has been featured around the world. She continues her art in Toronto, Canada.
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ARTIST STATEMENT
My art explores various mediums, including painting, public art, performance, sculpture, installation, video, textile, and mixed media. My paintings embody playfulness and freeform expression, presenting layers of deceptive complexity that invite deeper inspection. Drawing inspiration from nature and women's empowerment, I translate the ethereal sounds of the natural world—like the haunting melodies of whales—into vibrant visual masterpieces that reflect its rhythm and pulse.
I am motivated by the image of independent, liberated women, embodying freedom, happiness, and self-expression. Influenced by the words of feminist writers like Ursula K. Le Guin, I aspire to create art that conveys hope, unity, and constructive support. My compositions favor fluid shapes over hard-edged lines, echoing the submerged sounds that inspire me. I invite visitors to engage with my work, encouraging them to participate in this artistic journey of exploration and empowerment.
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EDUCATION
2027 Indigenous Art and Culture, OCAD University, Toronto, Canada
2023 Visual and Digital Arts, Humber College Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning, Toronto, Canada
1992 MFA Painting, Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University, Ä°stanbul, Türkiye
1989 BFA Painting, Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University, Ä°stanbul, Türkiye
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FEATURED / RECOGNITION
2026 Featured Artist of the Month, February
MSC Students, OCAD University
2025 Featured in OCAD University Instagram “Favourites” Series
Selected works: Umbilical Cord; We Are in One Body
2024 Partial x OCAD University
Artist Showcase
SELECTED SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2026 Helloart, Exhibition in Office Venue, Oakville, Canada
2025 Victoria Heritage Hotel, Mosaic Gallery, Toronto, Canada
2025 Partial, Exhibition in Office Venue, Toronto, Canada
2025 Helloart, Exhibition in Office Venue, Oakville, Canada
2024 Heal yourself with my color, Synonym Shop, Hamilton, Canada
2016 Love Rainbow, Turkan Saylan Cultural Art Center, Curator Yilmaz Zenger, Ä°stanbul, Türkiye
2012 Kiss Your Dream, Scoletta di San Giovanni Battista e del SS. Curated by Luca Curci, Venice, Italy
2011 I need to find a way to say I love you in multiple languages, Archè Arte Gallery, Roma, Italy
2010 Interactive, Cermodern Museum, Ankara, Türkiye
2006 Sound of Silk, TC Turkish Culture and Tourism Office Art Center, United Nations Plaza, New York City, USA
2006 Love is Love, Gershwin Pop Art Gallery, New York City, USA
2005 Whale Sounds, Broadway Gallery, New York City, USA
2004 Music, Gora Art Gallery, Montreal, Canada
2002 Whale Sounds, Artemis Art Centre, Ä°stanbul, Türkiye
1997 Solo Exhibition, Artemis Art Centre, Ä°stanbul, Türkiye
1995 Gulay Alpay Solo Exhibition, The Opera Art Gallery, The Marmara Hotel, Ä°stanbul, Türkiye
1990 Solo Exhibition, Press Museum Istanbul, Ä°stanbul, Türkiye
SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2026 Territories Exhibition Series, Cloverdale Common Space, Toronto, Canada
2026 The Colours That Tie Us, Etobicoke Civic Center, Toronto, Canada
2026 OCAD Pentimento 3, Toronto, Canada
2025 Roots and Wings, Turkish Canadian Contemporary Artist Group, Woman Art Centre, Toronto, Canada
2025 OCAD GradEx Showcase Indigenous Visual Culture (INVC), Toronto, Canada
2025 OCAD Pentimento 2, Toronto, Canada
2024 Artusiasm Expressions, Canada
2024 OCAD Mature Student Collective, Ada Slaight Gallery, Toronto, Canada
2024 Hamilton Art Fair, Cotton Factory, Hamilton, Canada
2024 More Portraits, Gallery 1313, Toronto, Canada
2024 Summer Exhibition, Gallery 1313, Toronto, Canada
2024 I Hear the Music, Cotton Factory, Hamilton, Canada
2022 Group Exhibition, Hamam Arts Hub, Ä°stanbul, Türkiye
2021 Winter Group Exhibition, Clark Centre of the Arts, Toronto, Canada
2020 Eco Art 2020, Gallery 1313, Toronto, Canada
2019 Group Exhibition, C/O Berlin Art Museum, Berlin, Germany
2013 Love Day, Camhane Art Centre, Ä°stanbul, Türkiye
2010 Wonderland, The Gershwin Museum, New York City, USA
2009 Here, There and Everywhere: Anticipating the Art of the Future, Distillery Gallery, Boston, USA
2006 Doodle, Broadway Gallery, New York City, USA
2005 66 Women 66 Art Pieces, Cekirdek Sanat Gallery, Ä°stanbul, Türkiye
2004 International Tile Project (Transcultural Exchange), Artemis Art Centre, Ä°stanbul, Türkiye
2003 Turkish Embassy Group Exhibition, Mile End Library, Montreal, Canada
2002 The Coaster Project (Transcultural Exchange), Artemis Art Centre, Ä°stanbul, Türkiye
2001 Documenta USA Exhibition, Museum of New Art, Detroit, USA
2004 Group Exhibition, Artemis Art Centre, Ä°stanbul, Türkiye
1996 Al-Fann, International Modern Fine Arts Exhibitions, Kassel, Germany
1995 Group Exhibition, Artemis Art Centre, Ä°stanbul, Türkiye
1995 Al-Fann, International Modern Fine Arts Exhibitions, Hann. Münden, Germany
1994 Present Artists 15th Annual Istanbul Exhibition, Painting and Sculpture Museum, Ä°stanbul,Türkiye
1991 The Turkish 8 Famous Modern Artists Exhibition, MSU Exhibition Centre, Ä°stanbul, Türkiye
1991 Group Exhibition, Cemal Resit Rey Exhibition Hall, Ä°stanbul, Türkiye
1990 Group Exhibition, Fine Art Faculty of Kassel University & MSU, Kassel, Germany
1990 Emerging Artist Exhibition, Derimod Art Gallery, Ä°stanbul, Türkiye
ART FAIRS
2010 NY Art Expo, NY, USA
2008 Art Basel, Miami, USA
2006 São Paulo Biennale, São Paolo, Brazil
2006 Contemporary Art Fair Ä°stanbul, Ä°stanbul, Türkiye
2005 Tuyap Art Fair, Ä°stanbul, Türkiye
PUBLIC ART
2025 We Are in One Body, OCAD University, Toronto, Canada
2015 Art for All People Program, Kalani Oceanside Art Retreat, Hawaii, USA
2013 Interactive Public Art Installation, Love Day Festival, Istanbul, Türkiye
2010 DFEW Möllnitz Austria Art Symposium, Austria
2011 Interactive Public Art Installation, Festival International Montréal en Arts (FIMA), Montreal, Canada
2010 Interactive Public Art Installation, New York Art Expo, New York, USA
2008 Public Art Performance, London Biennale, St Pancras Station, London, UK
2007 Public Art Performance, Contemporary Art Fair Ä°stanbul, Beijing Gallery, New York, USA
1998 Performance, Artemis Art Centre, Ä°stanbul, Türkiye
WORKSHOPS
2025 If I Had Wings, Woman Art Centre, Toronto, Canada
2019 Art Studio Workshop, 401 Richmond Street West, Toronto, Canada
2013 Art Workshops with Kids Kultur College Doha College, Doha, Qatar
ARTIST RESIDENCIES
2023-2025 Flick the Switch (Studio Residency), Toronto, Canada
2022-2023 MOCA Artist Residency (Studio Residency), Toronto, Canada
2016 Dorothea Fleiss & East-West Artists Residency, Mallnitz, Austria
2010 Dorothea Fleiss & East-West Artists Residency, Mallnitz, Austria
2006 Artist in Residence Program, Gershwin Hotel, New York, USA
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COLLABORATIVE PROJECTS
2010 Here, There and Everywhere, TransCultural Exchange, Boston, USA & Istanbul, Türkiye
Collaboration with Artist Walter Crump
2010 3D Project Room Installation, Broadway Gallery, NY, USA
Collaboration with Emre Ertürk
