LIVE

M.K. PERKER

27 JANUARY - 28 FEBRUARY

Pilot Gallery welcomes M.K. Perker, one of the most powerful names in contemporary art, with a live, one-of-a-kind experience that turns conventional exhibition formats upside down. Titled LIVE, this special exhibition, taking place between January 27 and February 28, sees the artist creating his works in the gallery, in front of the audience's eyes, over the course of five weeks, confronting viewers not with finished pieces, but with the act of creation itself.

LIVE transforms Pilot Gallery from an exhibition space into the artist's studio. As empty frames gradually fill, the space transitions from dimness to light. The viewer does not merely observe; they wait, bear witness, and become part of the process. Each visit becomes a unique moment of encounter with M.K. Perker's production and his presence in the production process. In this sense, LIVE has a performative, self-challenging, and “reverse” structure: it feeds not on the result, but on the state of becoming.

Present in the gallery every day during the exhibition, Perker greets art lovers with a different moment of creation. Thanks to these encounters, the exhibition spreads across overlapping flows of time rather than a fixed time frame. A viewer who visits the same exhibition twice inevitably witnesses two different moments, two different processes. The live drawing process can be watched in real time on a large screen behind the artist. Thus, the viewer experiences how a work is created not from a distance, but directly and simultaneously. 

The spatial design of this experience is shaped by a special design by Mozaik Design that permeates the spirit of the gallery. Throughout the exhibition, the space transforms as production progresses; the lighting, layout, and atmosphere change. Mozaik's design, which spreads throughout the space, creates a calm but intense viewing experience that focuses the viewer's attention on the process. The exhibition breathes like a living organism, not only through the works but also through the space itself.

LIVE is more than an exhibition; it is an experience that carries the courage to witness the production process. While making the artist's production visible, it also removes the viewer from a passive position. The visitor is no longer just a spectator; they become a subject who witnesses, accompanies, and is included in the moment. The exhibition ends with a final gathering where all the works are completed, leaving behind a layered and collective memory spread out over time.

ABOUT M.K. PERKER 

M.K. Perker (b. 1972, Istanbul) is one of Turkey's most internationally renowned illustrators and artists. His productions, which combine nostalgia with modernity, create a unique visual world inspired by film, music, advertising, history, and popular culture. His works, which are close to the Low Brow Art movement, bring together classical figurative elements with realistic, exaggerated, and sometimes surreal narratives. 

His thirty-year production practice developed along two main channels: Comic books gave Perker the freedom to create unreal characters and universes, while editorial illustration work allowed him to comment on current world affairs and politics with his unique humor and style.

This multifaceted approach enabled him to develop a strong and distinctive language as both an artist and an illustrator. This multifaceted approach has enabled him to develop a strong and distinctive language as both an artist and an illustrator.

His works have appeared in Turkish publications such as Gırgır, Leman, Milliyet, and Sabah; internationally, they have been published in prestigious outlets such as The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The New Yorker, and Mad Magazine. Nominated for Eisner Awards for his Air and Cairo works produced for DC Comics Vertigo, Perker is the first and only Turkish member of the International Illustrators Association. The artist currently works as a daily cartoonist for the Hürriyet newspaper and continues to serve as the editor-in-chief of Karakarga Publications, of which he is a founding member.