Ayşen Kaptanoğlu

Madé van Krimpen is pleased to present the second solo exhibition by Ayşen Kaptanoğlu at the gallery. The exhibition asks questions around motherhood, care, family, sexuality and the female body as starting points.

Ayşen Kaptanoğlu (Istanbul, 1985) is a multidisciplinary artist based in Amsterdam. Her practice investigates power dynamics, sexuality, and gender, asking questions about violence, its origins, and the structures that reproduce it. Kaptanoğlu’s use of bright colors and intense emotions is informed by personal experiences and the characters she has encountered in life and literature.

She studied literature at Istanbul University before training at Wackers Academy (2016–2021) and attending the Rijksakademie van Beeldende Kunsten (2022–2024). She recently received the Jeanne Oosting Prize 2025 for her works on paper. Kaptanoğlu has participated in group exhibitions such as the Jeanne Oosting Prijzen Exhibition at Museum MORE and Missing Like a Round Shape at Stedelijk Museum Schiedam (2025). Her recent solo exhibitions include Battlegrounds at Villa De Bank, Enschede, and Cracks, Holes and Roses at Madé van Krimpen, Amsterdam (2025). Her work has been shown internationally at venues including Jean-Claude Maier Gallery, Frankfurt, and Versus Art Project, Copenhagen.