Can Göknil (born in Ankara, 1945)

After graduating from the Fine Arts Department of Knox College (Illinois), in 1968, she received her MA degree in 1969 from The City College of the City University of New York, School of Fine Arts.

The images of Can Göknil’s personal exhibitions dwell on mythological subjects. For her, mythology is the richest and most universal of sources an artist can reach out to. She finds her themes within the beliefs and traditions of her cultural heritage, exploring each phase in depth,  creating her own interpretations through application of different techniques of artistry most suited to the theme at hand such as ceramic renderings, lead fixtures, acrylic painting, printmaking and wood sculptures.

The artist’s  works can be found in many private collections  as well as in:

Museo d`Arte Moderna (1973, San Marino)
Turkish House (1977, New York)
House of Humour and Satire (1995, 1999, Gabrovo)
Schenectady Museum (1998, New York)
Chihiro Art Museum (1999, Tokyo)
The National Art Library collection of Victoria & Albert Museum in London  (2005)

Her recent exhibitions include:

Chihiro Museum, 2003 Tokyo (solo)
The National Museum of Women in the Arts, 2004 Washington DC (group)
Frankfurt Book Fair, 2007, 2008 (group)
Terra di Libri, Siena, 2007 (group)
Istanbul Contemporary Art Fair, 2008 (group)
Museum der Arbeit, 2009 Hamburg (group)
Gallery Apel, 2010 Istanbul (solo)
Gallery Siyah Beyaz, 2011, Ankara (solo)

Can Göknil also writes and illustrates picture books for children. In 2010 Turkish section of IBBY has chosen Can Göknil as a candidate for the international Hans Christian Andersen Prize for her original and uique quality that provides  lasting impression for children. Several of her books have been translated into Dutch, German, French, English, Surinam and Arabic and have been awarded nationally and internationally.

She lives and works in Istanbul.