HAKAN BAKIR
Character Artist and Sculptor based in Warsaw, Poland.
Born in İzmit, Turkey, in 1984. He began his artistic education at İzmit Technical College, where he studied Graphic Design before continuing at the Sculpture Department of Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University in Istanbul, graduating with high honors in 2009. During his studies, he worked as an assistant to renowned Turkish sculptor Prof. Rahmi Aksungur, contributing to the creation of numerous public monuments. Between 2006 and 2007, he continued his education at the Accademia di Belle Arti di Carrara in Italy, where he refined his understanding of classical figurative sculpture while further developing his own artistic language in metal sculpture.
Throughout his academic career, Hakan received three awards at the Republic of Turkey Ministry of Culture State Sculpture Exhibition, as well as the Sabancı Foundation Art Award for outstanding artistic achievement. In 2013, he completed his Master's degree in Sculpture at Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University with a thesis exploring the concept of death in sculpture.
His sculptures have been exhibited internationally across Turkey, Poland, and the United States. Between 2011 and 2015, he was represented by Myra Galleries in Miami, where his works were exhibited alongside works by Pablo Picasso and Henri Matisse through the gallery's exhibition program. During this period, he also participated in major international art fairs, including Artexpo New York, presenting his works to collectors and galleries from around the world. His works are also included in the internationally recognized Elgiz Collection, one of Turkey's leading contemporary art collections, alongside works by Andy Warhol, Pablo Picasso, Louise Bourgeois, Cindy Sherman, Gilbert & George, and many other internationally acclaimed artists. In 2012, Artprice recognized him as one of the world's top-selling sculptors under the age of thirty. After relocating to Warsaw in 2015, he presented his first solo exhibition, Nokturn, and has since participated in numerous exhibitions throughout Poland, including presentations at Zachęta – National Gallery of Art. He was also awarded creative scholarships by the Polish Ministry of Culture and National Heritage in 2018, 2020, and 2022.
After more than two decades as a professional sculptor, Hakan has expanded his practice into digital character creation for the video game industry. Inspired by video games from an early age, he sees digital character art not as a departure from sculpture, but as its natural evolution. For him, digital character art extends the sculptural process beyond the static form, allowing his characters to move, perform, and exist within living worlds. His work combines classical sculptural principles with modern production workflows, including high-resolution sculpting, retopology, UV layout, baking, texturing, and real-time presentation.
Today, he specializes in creating realistic human and creature characters, bringing together the artistic discipline of a classically trained sculptor with the technical demands of contemporary game development.
For Hakan, the tools have evolved—from marble and iron to digital clay—but the artistic vision remains unchanged: creating characters that audiences can believe in, whether in a gallery or a virtual world.
Born in İzmit, Turkey, in 1984. He began his artistic education at İzmit Technical College, where he studied Graphic Design before continuing at the Sculpture Department of Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University in Istanbul, graduating with high honors in 2009. During his studies, he worked as an assistant to renowned Turkish sculptor Prof. Rahmi Aksungur, contributing to the creation of numerous public monuments. Between 2006 and 2007, he continued his education at the Accademia di Belle Arti di Carrara in Italy, where he refined his understanding of classical figurative sculpture while further developing his own artistic language in metal sculpture.
Throughout his academic career, Hakan received three awards at the Republic of Turkey Ministry of Culture State Sculpture Exhibition, as well as the Sabancı Foundation Art Award for outstanding artistic achievement. In 2013, he completed his Master's degree in Sculpture at Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University with a thesis exploring the concept of death in sculpture.
His sculptures have been exhibited internationally across Turkey, Poland, and the United States. Between 2011 and 2015, he was represented by Myra Galleries in Miami, where his works were exhibited alongside works by Pablo Picasso and Henri Matisse through the gallery's exhibition program. During this period, he also participated in major international art fairs, including Artexpo New York, presenting his works to collectors and galleries from around the world. His works are also included in the internationally recognized Elgiz Collection, one of Turkey's leading contemporary art collections, alongside works by Andy Warhol, Pablo Picasso, Louise Bourgeois, Cindy Sherman, Gilbert & George, and many other internationally acclaimed artists. In 2012, Artprice recognized him as one of the world's top-selling sculptors under the age of thirty. After relocating to Warsaw in 2015, he presented his first solo exhibition, Nokturn, and has since participated in numerous exhibitions throughout Poland, including presentations at Zachęta – National Gallery of Art. He was also awarded creative scholarships by the Polish Ministry of Culture and National Heritage in 2018, 2020, and 2022.
After more than two decades as a professional sculptor, Hakan has expanded his practice into digital character creation for the video game industry. Inspired by video games from an early age, he sees digital character art not as a departure from sculpture, but as its natural evolution. For him, digital character art extends the sculptural process beyond the static form, allowing his characters to move, perform, and exist within living worlds. His work combines classical sculptural principles with modern production workflows, including high-resolution sculpting, retopology, UV layout, baking, texturing, and real-time presentation.
Today, he specializes in creating realistic human and creature characters, bringing together the artistic discipline of a classically trained sculptor with the technical demands of contemporary game development.
For Hakan, the tools have evolved—from marble and iron to digital clay—but the artistic vision remains unchanged: creating characters that audiences can believe in, whether in a gallery or a virtual world.