Kutluğ Ataman

Kutluğ Ataman — Biography

Kutluğ Ataman (born 1961 in Istanbul) is a Turkish-American film director and contemporary artist known for his films and video installations. He studied filmmaking at UCLA and at the Sorbonne; since 1998 his work has explored the lives of marginalized individuals, examining identity through gender, social roles and ethnicity. His work has been shown at the Istanbul (1997), Venice (1999) and Berlin (2000) biennials and at Documenta 11 in Kassel in 2002, and his German production Lola and Billy the Kid was honored at the 1999 Berlinale.

In 2004 he won the Carnegie Prize for his installation Kuba and was nominated for the Turner Prize the same year for Twelve; he has also received the Golden Orange Best Director Award and the Abraaj Group Art Prize. His work is held in collections including MoMA, the Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum and the Carnegie Museum of Art, and he divides his time between Istanbul, London and Erzincan, where his house has won two international architecture awards.

His 2014 film Kuzu (Lamb) premiered at the Berlin Film Festival and went on to win several further awards. In 2023 he was honored with a royal award by the King of the Netherlands, but said he was unable to attend the ceremony after the Dutch consulate denied him a visa.