Selime Okuyan
Turkish born with Uzbek roots lives in New York with her husband, son and pooch, Lola. She earned a BFA in Illustration from the School of Visual Arts, studied painting at the Art Students League, is a recent Muslim Storyteller Fellowship recipient from the Highlights Foundation and a long term studio artist resident at the Clemente Soto Velez Cultural Center. She’s also received grants and fellowships from Artist in the Marketplace at the Bronx Museum, Anderson Ranch Art Center, Pamela Joseph Fellowship, Soho20, and National Arts Club membership among others. She has worked as an illustrator, portrait painter and multi media artist using a variety of mediums and tools, the latest being Procreate and monotype printing. She recently joined the Society of Children’s Books Writers and Illustrators, the12x12 Community of Writers and the Storystorm challenge to deepen her focus on picture book and graphic novel projects based on Central Asian fairytales and folktales, as well as personal stories passed down from her parents and grandparents.
Mother
pencil on paper