Ahmet Yakupoğlu was born in 1920 Kütahya.
He has been educated from his high school in Kütahya. In 1941, His talent was discovered by Süheyl Ünver, so he followed to Feyhaman Duran workshop which is now known as Academy of Fine Arts, Mimar Sinan University. He has been educated in 1945.
Mean while he was the student of Neyzen Halil Dikmen, by means of Ord. Prof. Süheyl Ünver. Sometime he learned tezhip (ornament) and miniature (An illustration in an illuminated manuscript).
At the time although he was a good painter that he could exhibit his paintings in Paris. He preferred to return to Kütahya, Turkey and painted the nature. He initiated the Turkish Classical Music working, taught playing of several musical instruments ney (reed flute) to his students. He revitalized the old musical instrument Rebab (A stringed musical instrument, related to the lute, used especially in Islamic countries), and he touhgt the playing of Rebab, to his students. Lots of people learned playing ney, (so Kütahya was called the ney, playing city) His preferring in the ney playing is shah (King) chord.. in that years he attended to the radio programs.
First of all he painted the nature in around Kütahya, old historical buildings and streets He contributed our culture and fine arts, and painted his painting oil color and different colors. He painted the rivers and waters so he called the painter of water (the artist of water).
He painted lots of paintings in Konya, Bursa, İznik, Antalya, Amasya as a documentary.
He provided the establish of the Museum of Kütahya, He worked, contributed the afforestation of Kütahya, painted some paintings as an expression of love of nature and history. He studied in the restoration of historical monuments in Kütahya with his physical and spiritual participations.
With donation of his land, he planned and designed the construction project of the tiled mosque that is famous its tiled, became a symbol of Kütahya.
He made his house a public museum and education center, including his oil paintings, tezhip (ornaments), miniatures musical studies.
His most aspect is the miniature art. His studies are about Kütahya culture and art that are miniature album and Nasrettin Hoca ( He is the famous anectode teller). In 1995 He got award of İş Bankası Culture Art Grand Prize with his “Sokağım ve Çinili Cami (My street and the Tiled Mosque)”
He prepared an album including some portraits and flower pictures in oil color and pencil.
He painted about four thousand painting in some collections and houses. He donated about thousand paintings to “Ahmet Yakupoğlu Culture and Arts Foundation” after cancel the foundation, He donated his paintings, all real estates, all music enstruments and whole art books to Dumlupınar University.
He hasn’t lot of art exhibitions but he said that his house had been used as art exhibitions.
He had modesty, intellectual personality, patience and determined. His aspects that mentioned made him loving man, everybody in Kütahya knows him “artist Ahmet” and “big brother Ahmet”. The name of Kütahya was announced in the world by Ahmet Yakupoğlu.
He got the grace of the right on October 2, 2016 in Kütahya, the city where he was born.
Works:
- “Ahmet Yakupoğlu’nun fırçasından Boğaziçi” Turkish Petroleum Foundation Cultural Publications,1983, İstanbul
- “Rengarenk Kütahya”, Turkish Petroleum Foundation Cultural Publications, 1991, İstanbul (Turkish - English)
- “Resimde İstanbul ve İstanbul Ressamı Ahmet Yakupoğlu” Ministry of Culture General Directorate of Fine Arts, December 2002, Ankara
- “Minyatürlerle Nasrettin Hoca”, Konya Metropolitan Municipality Directorate of Culture Publications 28, 1999, İstanbul (Ottoman - Turkish - English) there are four works published under the name.
