Organized for Nuri İyem since 2006, the eleventh edition of the “Nuri İyem Painting Contest” is carried out by the Evin Art Gallery which celebrates its 20th year. 2016 Nuri İyem Painting Award went to Rugül Serbest with her work entitled “You Should Stay”.
The contest hosted 255 paintings of 191 painters from 23 different cities. İstanbul, İzmir, Ankara, Eskişehir, Antalya and Adana being in the first place, many people participated in the contest from Aydın, Bursa, Çanakkale, Malatya, Diyarbakır, Konya, Mersin, Muğla, Şanlıurfa, Uşak and Erzurum. Particularly in Mimar Sinan University of Fine Arts, Marmara University and Anadolu University, the student participators continue their graduate education in 20 different universities.
At the awards ceremony held in the Evin Art Gallery on Thursday, June 9, 2016; the sculpture representing the “Nuri İyem Painting Award” which is dedicatedly created by Prof. Rahmi Aksungur and the award valuing 10,000 TL were given to Rugül Serbest by Doğan Hızlan. Following the ceremony, the exhibition is launched with a total of 28 paintings including the awarded painting and paintings that are deemed worthy to exhibit by the selection committee.
The artists that their works are deemed worthy for the exhibition by the selection committee are: Aslı Akyüz, Ahmet Albayrak, Elif Aydemir, Sidar Baki, Müge Bakır, Zuhal Baysar, Zehra Seda Boztunalı, Nurdan Erol, Bülent Gürcihan, Hale İsmet, Damla Karadere, Ezgi Kılıç, Serdar Oruç, R. Doğuhan Özgün, Belit Sak, Hatice Seher Ünal, Mihrişah Süerdaş, Şerif Sümer, Dilek Şenyürek, Alev Tambaşar, Aysun Telli, Tünay Tunç, Ayşe Nilgün Ulaştırıcı, Derya Ülker, Yunus Yanık and Berrin Yırtmaç
