Fırat Koç’s “Algı Serisi” at Arete, Ankara: Nine Paintings on How We See

Two people stand in front of the same painting and see two different pictures. Most exhibitions treat that as a side effect; Fırat Koç’s “Algı Serisi” at Arete in Ankara makes it the subject. The solo exhibition — its title means “Perception Series” — opened on 17 October and continues until 15 November 2026 at Arete Art Gallery in Çankaya, with nine new paintings that ask how much of what we see is really out there, and how much we bring with us.

The idea: reality as something we keep remaking

The gallery’s exhibition text sets out the premise clearly. Is reality fixed and unchanging, or is it something each person perceives, experiences and gives meaning to in their own way? Koç leans toward the second answer. Rather than one absolute whole, reality in this series is continually reshaped by the senses and perception of whoever is looking.

The key phrase in the text is “micro-realities”. Objects, subjects and experiences, the gallery explains, take on different meanings in each viewer’s mind, so every painting splits into as many versions as it has viewers. The exhibition therefore invites visitors to meet the works through their own gaze, and to let that personal experience define what each canvas is. It is an old philosophical question — painters from the Impressionists onward have wrestled with the gap between the world and our perception of it — posed here in contemporary terms.

What is on the walls

According to Arete’s works page, the exhibition consists of nine paintings, all titled Algı Serisi, all made in 2026 and all in oil and acrylic on canvas. Giving every work the same title is a telling choice: it removes the guidance a title usually provides and leaves the viewer alone with the image — exactly the condition the series is about.

The formats vary considerably, which shapes the viewing experience:

• The largest canvases — 155 × 125, 150 × 120, 145 × 115 and 140 × 120 cm — are close to body height and fill the field of vision.
• A horizontal work of 85 × 145 cm breaks the vertical rhythm of the series.
• Smaller pieces, from 90 × 77 cm and a square 90 × 90 cm up to 110 × 90 cm, ask for closer, more intimate looking.

The combination of oil and acrylic is worth noticing on site. Acrylic dries fast and suits flat, quick layers; oil stays open longer and allows blending and depth. How Koç plays the two against each other — and whether the surfaces read differently from near and far — is one of the questions a visit can answer better than any reproduction.

About the artist

Arete has not published a biography of Fırat Koç, and we could not find one in reliable sources, so we will not speculate about his background or training. That, too, fits the spirit of the show: the paintings arrive without a story attached. Visitors who want to know more about the artist’s path and earlier work can ask the gallery directly, or follow Arete’s social media channels, where exhibition updates are posted.

Arete and the October season in Çankaya

Arete is a private gallery in the Hilal neighbourhood of Çankaya, on Aleksander Dubçek Caddesi. It runs several exhibitions in parallel: during the same period it is showing Ömer Faruk Erdoğan, and Raşit Altun’s SIR runs from 14 October to 12 November. A single visit therefore offers three quite different practices, which makes Arete a useful stop on any gallery walk through central Ankara this autumn.

Why it matters for collectors and painters

For collectors, a tightly focused series of nine works from a single year offers an easy way to compare formats and choose the scale that suits a space. The gallery publishes availability and prices on its works page — at the time of writing, between USD 2,750 and 6,700, with one work already marked as sold — but these can change, so confirm with the gallery. For painters, Algı Serisi is a reminder that a series can be built around a question rather than a motif, and that withholding titles is itself a compositional decision.

Visiting information

Arete, Hilal Mahallesi, Aleksander Dubçek Caddesi 18/B, 06550 Çankaya, Ankara. 17 October – 15 November 2026. Open Monday to Saturday, 09:30–18:30. Telephone +90 532 617 66 11, email [email protected].

See the official exhibition page and the works page, our exhibition listing, and more Ankara and Istanbul openings on Upcoming Art Exhibitions in Leading Galleries.