Internationally acclaimed Turkish artist and intellectual Bedri Baykam was born in Ankara, Turkey in 1957. He began painting at two, and by six was known throughout the world as a wunderkind, with exhibitions in New York, London, Rome, Geneva, and elsewhere. In the early eighties, Baykam studied at both the Sorbonne and the California College of Arts and Crafts. He currently resides in Istanbul, and his work continues to appear in galleries and museums around the globe. In addition to being an artist, he is a prolific writer, with a daily column in the Turkish leftist publication Cumhuriyet, and having authored over 20 books on politics and theory of art. In 2003, Baykam was a serious candidate for the presidency of the main Turkish social democrat party, The Republican party of the People (CHP).