Simay Kışlaoğlu: A Hyperrealist of Power, Identity, and Inner Strength
October 06, 2025Simay Kışlaoğlu is a contemporary artist known for her powerful self-portraits and symbolic storytelling. Through hyperrealist technique and deep emotional themes, she explores questions of identity, resilience, and the human spirit. Her work is not just visual it is psychological, carrying the weight of silence, struggle, and inner power.
For Simay, painting is not a hobby. It is a necessity, a lifelong commitment.
“Each painting tells a story. I can’t sit still I have to create, I have to paint. I want to mark my name in the world. Even when I’m gone, I want people to remember me through my artworks.”
The Chess Series: Power, Identity, and Inner Battles
In her signature Chess Series, Simay Kışlaoğlu places herself in symbolic roles Queen, Knight, Rook exploring the complexity of human decisions and emotional struggles. She uses the chessboard as a metaphor for life: strategy, risk, sacrifice, and the battle between logic and emotion.
These works are not about victory. They are about courage the courage to stand before making a move.
Cinders and Queens
150 × 150 cm · Oil on Canvas
“Where power rises from ashes.”
Cinders and Queens represents rebirth after destruction. Inspired by the myth of the phoenix, the painting speaks of transformation through pain. It expresses that true strength is not given it is forged.
The message is clear: even after collapse, something stronger can rise.
As Nietzsche said, “What does not kill me makes me stronger.”
Queen of Illusions
90 × 120 cm · Oil on Canvas
Influenced by the elegance of classical masters like Vermeer, Queen of Illusions connects past and present. The calm expression, soft light, and realistic detail create a sense of intimacy yet the bold checkerboard introduces modern tension.
It asks a quiet question: What is real, and what is illusion?
In today’s world of masks and shifting truths, the painting challenges the viewer to look deeper.
Red Gambit
120 × 180 cm · Oil on Canvas
In Red Gambit, life is shown as a chessboard of choices. Black and white represent strategy and logic but through them cuts a stroke of red, symbolizing passion, risk, and instinct.
This painting reminds us that true mastery is not avoiding mistakes, but daring to act.
It does not ask, Will you win?
It asks, Will you dare to move?
Contemporary Istanbul – 20th Edition
A Sold-Out Success
Simay Kışlaoğlu’s participation in the 20th Edition of Contemporary Istanbul, represented by AWC Gallery, marked a major moment in her career. Her works attracted high collector interest, and most pieces were sold during the fair.
Viewers were drawn not only to her technique, but to the emotional power in her gaze and symbolism. Word spread quickly: a unique artistic voice had arrived.
Legacy
Simay Kışlaoğlu paints to build memory to leave proof of spirit. Her art carries a timeless aim: to remain long after the world grows silent.
“I do not paint to be seen. I paint to remain.”
