 Coming from an artistic family, Esin Alptuna was born in Ankara, Turkey. She graduated from Santa Barbara High School in California while on an American Field Service scholarship. In Turkey, after finishing Ankara College, she studied Law at Ankara University. After her graduation, she followed her diplomat husband to foreign postings for more than twenty-five years and brought up two sons.
She started taking drawing, painting and porcelain decorating lessons in Copenhagen in 1975. She especially concentrated on porcelain painting at the studio of Herr Erik Nervil for three years. When she moved to Brussels, Belgium in 1979, she studied at the studio of Madame Denise Labeye for two years, and she painted at various studios for two more years while living in Dusseldorf, Germany.
Esin lived in New York with her family from 1986 to 1990. She taught Turkish at New York University and china painting at her New York home. On her return to Ankara in 1990, she set up her studio to train porcelain painters and also taught English at the Middle East Technical University. After moving to Finland in 1995, she studied naturalistic and classical styles with Herr Ole Lindgren and impressionistic painting techniques with Frau Anneli Reinikainen in Helsinki. She also taught European and Turkish style porcelain painting to a group of international students. While in Helsinki, she studied portrait painting in oils with Herr Serguei Zlenko for two years. After the family moved to Paris, she painted in Atelier Chambrelain, Invalides and taught again for two more years. She taught at her own studio in Ankara for two years while on a home posting. In 2003, she moved to London for four years. She continued painting at Hobbyceram Studios and teaching painting in various styles at her own studio. At various times she attended seminars to further her knowledge on different styles and techniques, namely seminars conducted by Ms. Paula Collins in Wakefield, England and seminars given by a variety of artists within the Porcelain Painting Convention "Azzurra" in Como, Italy, organized by Hobbyceram.
Esin has been displaying her work in solo exhibitions in various galleries, cultural centers and porcelain conventions in New York, Ankara, Bonn, Dortmund, Berlin and Como since 1988. In December 2010, Esin's hand painted porcelain was displayed in her solo exhibition at the Art Gallery of Ankara University (Please go to exhibitions page for details). She has also given lectures on "History, Development and Styles of Porcelain Art" in Germany and France.
The artist is currently teaching in her own studio in Ankara. She also gives seminars on various techniques concentrating on one chosen project and style at a time. (Please go to Lessons and Seminars page for details ..)
Esin Alptuna is inspired by the beauty and artistic expressionism in hand painted porcelain that is made possible by new and old techniques and material. She also aims to increase the interest of art lovers in traditional Turkish designs expressed in a new and creative way on overglazed porcelain. She is constantly doing research on creating new and unique designs as well as interpreting designs from the works of classical artists. She owns a collection of over 750 publications on art, hand painted china, antique porcelain, museum collections and nature.
|
