13.11.2026 12:32
Dede Faruk Efe, 58, living in the Kozluca village of the Acıgöl district of Nevşehir, has been decorating tractor trailers, horse-drawn carts, and truck beds with nature landscapes, animal figures, and flower motifs using his brush since 1980. Efe, who says he cannot find an apprentice in the profession, wants crafts masters to be identified and support to be provided so that the profession can be passed on to future generations.
Dede Faruk Efe (58), who lives in the village of Kozluca in the Acıgöl district of Nevşehir, has been painting metal surfaces with his brush for 46 years. Efe, who has a workshop in the industrial site, decorates tractor trailers, horse-drawn carts and truck bodies with nature scenes and floral motifs.
Dede Faruk Efe, who is married and a father of three, started working in advertising and sign-making at the Nevşehir Industrial Site in 1980 after graduating from primary school, and over time reflected the art of painting, which he had been interested in since an early age, into his work. Efe, who improved himself over the years by focusing on brushwork, decorates trailers, horse-drawn carts and truck bodies with animal figures, nature scenes and floral patterns both in his workshop in the city center and in the towns and villages he visits upon request. Efe complains about not being able to find apprentices for the profession.
'OUR PROFESSION IS TRULY COMING TO AN END'
Dede Faruk Efe, stating that he will continue producing as long as his health permits, said, "After finishing primary school, I started working in advertising and sign-making in 1980. Over time, by focusing on brushwork, I turned toward drawing pictures on tractor trailers, horse-drawn carts and truck bodies in the industrial site. I had a talent for painting since my primary school years. Our profession is truly coming to an end. I have one or two people I have trained. My request from the state is that masters engaged in handicrafts like ours be identified and that work be done so these professions do not disappear. We are approaching the age of 60. We want this profession to be passed on to future generations," he said.
'WE CAN EVEN CONTRIBUTE TO TEACHING IT AT UNIVERSITIES'
Explaining that painting teachers at universities also occasionally consult him, Efe said, "Sometimes our professors call us and ask, 'Brother, how do you do this work so practically?' I grew up in the industrial site within a master-apprentice relationship. In this way, we learned to draw pictures in every field. Our wish is that this experience of ours be utilized. We can contribute to teaching this profession in apprenticeship training, even at universities. Our expectation from the authorities is that masters like us be supported and that this profession not come to an end," he said.