ERSİN YILDIZHAN

Born in Istanbul in 1967, Ersin Yıldızhan received his training in the art of Tezhip (illumination) at the Department of Medical Ethics and History of Medicine at Cerrahpaşa Medical Faculty, under the guidance of Ord. Prof. A. Süheyl Ünver Nakışhanesi. He also studied the art of Katı’ (paper cutting) at the Turkish Grand National Assembly’s National Palaces Traditional Turkish Arts Education Center.

Between 2010 and 2013, he served as an assistant to his mentor, Dürdane Ünver. Since 2013, he has been teaching Katı’ at the Küçükçekmece Academy of Fine Arts.

Ersin Yıldızhan has served as a jury member twice for the "Legacy of the Future Traditional Arts Competition," and as a member of the Selection Committee for the Ministry of Culture's Artist Promotion Card in 2018, 2019, and 2020. He also served as a Selection Committee Member for the 21st State Turkish Arts Competition in 2022.

Featured in the book "Istanbul's 100 Traditional Artists," published by Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality’s Culture A.Ş., Ersin Yıldızhan has participated in numerous exhibitions, with his works appearing in various books and catalogs.

In 2016, he held the "Color, Space, Rhythm" exhibition, and in 2018, he showcased "Interpretation with Katı’," followed by his participation in the "Yeditepe Biennial" the same year. In these events, he presented works that diverged from traditional presentation and production techniques, incorporating unique spatial and surface arrangements.

Since 2016, he has garnered attention with his innovative interpretations and contemporary approach to Katı’. In 2019, his story and work were featured in the "MUASIR" program on TRT2, which profiles artists who reinterpret traditional arts in a modern context.

In 2017, invited by the Yunus Emre Institute, Ersin Yıldızhan conducted a week-long workshop in Berlin, Germany, promoting the Turkish art of fine paper cutting (Katı’).

In 2018 and 2019, he contributed to the curriculum development committee for the Traditional Turkish Arts Vocational and Technical Anatolian High School under the Ministry of National Education. He continues to teach at the Küçükçekmece Academy of Fine Arts, while also working at his studio located in the Istanbul Arts Bazaar, affiliated with Turing, and at the 3E ART STUDIO, which he co-founded with his colleagues.