I was born in 1986, in Istanbul, Turkiye. As a little boy, I had the poorest appetite, and my grandparents devoted themselves to not only making sure that I ate, but ate a lot. In order to do that they had to be creative.

Some of my earliest influences were the fantastic pastoral stories made up by my grandfather. My grandparents had no formal education, but my grandfather had a vivid imagination and a natural inclination for storytelling.

Spending long summers with them in their village on top of the Black Sea mountains presented me with an opportunity to develop a kindred relationship with nature and folklore, which continues to feed my imagination to this day.

I take a mindful approach to craft commissioned work for clients, including organizations such as, the Museum of Tolerance, Sony Pictures Television, California Department of Justice, National Gallery of Art, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, International Monetary Fund, and the University of California San Diego.