Mehmet Aksoy (sculptor)

Content sourced from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

Mehmet Aksoy, born May 15, 1939, in Kessab, Syria, is a Turkish sculptor. His work blends sensual figurative elements with modernist, abstract ideas. He mostly works in stone but often combines other materials as well. He lives and works in a large, dramatic studio near Istanbul.

Education and career:
- He studied painting at the Istanbul Academy of Fine Arts (now Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University) starting in 1960, then switched to sculpture under Prof. Şadi Çalık from 1961 to 1967.
- After military service, he worked as an assistant at the same academy in 1969–1970.
- In 1970 he received a state scholarship to study in London, then moved to Berlin to study at the Hochschule der Künste, earning a master’s degree in 1977.
- He returned to Turkey in 1978 and worked as an instructor until 1980.

Notable works and events:
- Memorial to the Deserter in Potsdam, Germany. The statue honors people who refuse to fight in unjust wars and is carved in a negative relief style.
- Statue of Humanity in Kars, Turkey. A 30-meter-tall sculpture on Kazıktepe Hill meant as a gesture of reconciliation with Armenia. It faced protests and was demolished in 2011. Aksoy sued Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan after Erdoğan called the work a "freak." A court later fined Erdoğan for the remark, but the verdict was overturned in a subsequent ruling. Aksoy also faced another lawsuit related to political statements but was eventually acquitted.

Personal note:
- He has his own studio on the outskirts of Istanbul.

In 2023, he lost his brother, sister-in-law, and a sibling’s child in the Turkey–Syria earthquake.