Newton Centre

Defne Surujon is a Boston-based artist and computational biologist who loves blending the serious with the silly. Their paintings often feature skeletons, animals, and odd little scenes that mix humor, curiosity, and emotion — like a possum trotting along holiday lights, a skeleton lost in thought, a cat mid-yawn. Much of their work plays with color and gesture to explore how something strange can still feel familiar or tender. Their background in science shows up too — in the way they experiment, observe, and let each painting evolve in its own direction.Defne’s art has been shown in community exhibitions around Boston, and they also make prints and stickers of their work (and are open to commissions).

You can find more of their pieces at dsurujon.github.io or on Instagram at @DefneSurujonArt.