Bio

Taner Paşamehmetoğlu is an award-winning multidisciplinary visual artist whose career reflects a passion for both art and storytelling. With a childhood immersed in artistic endeavors, thanks to his parents who are also artists, Paşamehmetoğlu was introduced to the world of drawing, painting, and experimental visual mediums at an early age. His love of photography specifically started during family trips to Türkiye, where he often captured his surroundings with the family camera, which he used to reconnect with his heritage and bring a part of it home with him.

Paşamehmetoğlu pursued his undergraduate studies in Strategic Communication at the University of Utah, where he excelled as a photojournalist and Photo Editor for the Daily Utah Chronicle. His professional journey continued as he dedicated seven seasons (2013-2019) in a photography residency with Real Salt Lake, a Major League Soccer team based in Salt Lake City, UT. Initially starting as an unpaid intern, he evolved into a trusted part of the team, refining his skills in capturing raw emotion and action, collaborating with other photographers, videographers and journalists and developing a narrative-driven photographic style that was used in many marketing materials and for the players own personal collection and use.

In the early stages of his career, Paşamehmetoğlu also worked in creative advertising agencies, collaborating on campaigns for Fortune 500 companies such as Microsoft and Subway Restaurants. His expertise extended to non-profit sectors as well, where he worked with the Utah Division of Highway Safety and Utah Division of Natural Resources on impactful cause-marketing campaigns. Notably, in 2018, his team’s work on the "Shattered Lives Tree" sculpture, crafted from broken alcohol bottles and car parts, received regional recognition from the American Advertising Federation. This project highlighted the dangers of drinking and driving, underscoring Paşamehmetoğlu's recognition of art's powerful role beyond aesthetics. 

This led Paşamehmetoğlu to a desire to create meaningful work on his own, outside of the confines of a commercial structure. And while Paşamehmetoğlu continued to work full-time in marketing, as he developed an evening and weekend practice, his time in the corporate world served as inspiration in his latest bodies of work. Paşamehmetoğlu began to use his practice as a way to reflect and question his own purpose, cultural hybridity, and the meaning and pursuit of the "American Dream". 

Relocating to California in 2020 amidst the pandemic, Paşamehmetoğlu shifted his focus to refining his painting practice and deepening his connection with the natural environment. His recent works, exhibited in several group shows, emphasize environmental preservation, with pieces like "Erosion" featured in the 2023 Axis Gallery National Juried Exhibition, and "Photosynthesis," earning second place in the 2023 Magnum Opus show at Sacramento Fine Arts Center. It was during this time that Paşamehmetoğlu also began experimenting with upcycled materials and natural elements like wind, heat, and rain in his works, blurring the line between nature and artist. 

In 2023, Paşamehmetoğlu embarked on a one-year artist residency with the City of Sacramento, working with the Office of Climate Action and Sustainability. Through this residency, he utilizes his visual art practice to engage and enlighten communities on climate-related issues, further demonstrating his commitment to blending artistic expression with social impact.

Today, Paşamehmetoğlu continues his studio practice in Sacramento, CA and is involved in a number of art projects and programs in the community. 

CV/Resume

 Solo Exhibitions

• January 2025-March 2025, Featured Artist, Fort Sutter Hotel, Sacramento, CA

Duo Exhibitions

• June-July 2024, "Chasing the Raft of the Medusa", Chico Arts Center, Chico, CA

Group Exhibitions

• September 2024, Politically Charged, Blue Line Arts, Roseville, CA

• May 2024, Pure Imagination, The Mills Station Arts & Culture Center, Rancho Cordova, CA

• September 2023, Abstract Makes the City, The Gallery 916, Sacramento, CA

• August 2023, In Limbo - 18th National Juried Exhibition, Axis Gallery, Sacramento, CA

• May 2023, Abstractly Speaking - Juried Group Show, Elk Grove Fine Arts Center, Elk Grove, CA 

• February 2023, Magnum Opus - Juried Group Show, Sacramento Fine Arts Center, Sacramento, CA

• January 2023, "Climate Changing", Las Lagunas Art Gallery, Laguna Beach, CA

Residencies

• Sep 2023-June 2024, Capitol Region Creative Corps - The Office of Climate Action and Sustainability, Sacramento, CA

• 2013-2019, Real Salt Lake, Salt Lake City, UT

Special Projects

• Live painter for Midtown Association during Second Saturday's in Midtown Sacramento, July-October 2023, 2024

• Commissioned to create logo and branding elements for "Bread Riot Bakehouse", a local bakery in Salt Lake City, UT 2016

• Commissioned to create logo for "Pepper Jo Farms", a local farm in Delta, CO 2023

Collections

• City of Sacramento, Art in Public Places Collection, Sacramento, CA, "Make Your Mark", 2024

• Works held in private collections across the United States with some collectors acquiring multiple pieces

Awards & Honors

• "The American Dream" featured in lectures and exercises by Professor Chris Christion, Art History Professor/Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA, 2024

• Audience Award Selection, "The American Dream", Blue Line Arts, Politically Charged, Roseville, CA, 2024

• Second Place, "Photosyntehsis", Sacramento Fine Arts Center, Magnum Opus Juried Group Show, Sacramento, CA, 2023

• Silver Addy Award, "Shattered Lives Tree" The American Advertising Federation - Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, 2018

• Region 9 Mark of Excellence Awards - Third Place for Feature Photography, Society of Professional Journalists, Salt Lake City, UT, 2011