Sabancı University Sakıp Sabancı Museum (SSM), with the support of Yüksel İnşaat A.Ş., is hosting from 16 April to 2 August 2009, "TRAVEL TO THE WEST - 70 Years of Turkish Painting (1860 - 1930)".
By means of the works of artists born in the 19th century, from Osman Hamdi Bey to İbrahim Çallı, from Feyhaman Duran to Namık İsmail, the rich history of Turkish painting will be examined.
The works of 15 of our great artists, including such painters of military origin as Şeker Ahmet Paşa and Halil Paşa, who contributed new approaches to art with analytical solutions and expressionistic interpretations, are represented by 150 works of art selected from the collections of the Presidential Atatürk Museum Pavilion, the Ankara Museum of Painting and Sculpture, the TBMM National Palaces Dolmabahçe Palace Museum, MSGSÜ İstanbul Museum of Painting and Sculpture, the SSM collections and private collections. The great surprise of this exhibition is the second version of Osman Hamdi Bey’s renowned work "The Tortoise Trainer", from a private collection, being exhibited for the first time in this exhibition.
Curated by Ferit Edgü, this exhibition in which the Turkish art of painting in the Western sense is being interpreted anew also includes works by painters such as Jean-Léon Gérôme and Gustave Boulanger, who were the teachers of the first generation of Turkish painters in Paris. Thus the works of painters from the period of the second half of the 19th century through the 1930s, represented by Osman Hamdi Bey and his contemporaries, are being exhibited for the first time in the company of works by the teachers who influenced them.
According to SSM Director Dr. Nazan Ölçer, "We are presenting art lovers with a retrospective exhibition of the 70-year development of the art of Turkish painting. The paintings in this exhibition provide a strong foundation for the understanding of the concept of art and points of view that manifested in Ottoman and Turkish painting, with their different appearance and conventions. Throughout the duration of the exhibition, as always, our educational programs and studio workshops for school children and youth will continue. Visitors will also be able to view such documentary films as "Paintings from the Ottoman Palace Collection", "Osman Hamdi Bey" and "Memories of the War of Independence."
The exhibition's supporter Yüksel İnşaat A.Ş.’s Human Resources and Corporate Communications Coordinator Deniz Sazak stated, "As the management of Yüksel İnşaat, we are proud to be the supporters of such a valuable artistic endeavor. In a changing world, Yüksel İnşaat is a firm that has a deep awareness of social responsibility and has supported many projects in the realms of education, art, archaeology and sports. We sincerely thank those who have made it possible to view this ensemble of the works of the pioneers of modern Turkish art: valued man of arts and letters Ferit Edgü, SSM Director Nazan Ölçer, and, for her vision, Sabancı Holding President of the Board of Directors Güler Sabancı".
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