Güzel İstanbul
Güzel İstanbul is a sculpture made of concrete, located in Yildiz Park in Istanbul, Turkey. The statue shows a naked woman and was created by an artist named Gürdal Duyar.
Güzel İstanbul | |
---|---|
Oh Beautiful Istanbul | |
![]() Güzel İstanbul in the Yıldız Park (c.2020) | |
Artist | Gürdal Duyar |
Year | 1974 |
Medium | poured concrete |
Dimensions | 4.8 m × 1.7 m × 1.5 m (190 in × 67 in × 59 in) |
Weight | 7,000 kilograms (15,000 lb) |
Condition | damaged, parts missing |
Location | Karaköy Square, Istanbul (formerly) Yıldız Park, Istanbul |
In 1973, the Istanbul Municipality asked artists to create 20 sculptures to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Turkish Republic. Güzel Istanbul is one of these sculptures, and it shows a naked woman to represent the city. The base of the sculpture has pictures that represent the history of Istanbul.
Originally, Güzel Istanbul was placed at Karaköy Square. But some conservative politicians and media outlets said it was offensive and wanted it taken down. In March 1974, the sculpture caused a big argument in the government. After nine days of debate, Güzel Istanbul was removed and damaged on March 18th. It was left in Karaköy Square for over a month. Eventually, on May 2nd, the statue was moved to Yildiz Park and put back up on a temporary base. It still remains in Yildiz Park today, but nobody has fixed the damage done to it.
Commission
changeIn 1972, the governor's office in Istanbul created a group called the Board for the Celebration of the 50th Anniversary of the Republic. The board was made to plan for the anniversary which would happen in the next year.[1] The Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality, the Istanbul Fine Arts Academy, and the State College of Fine and Applied Arts worked together to make the Fine Arts Committee. This committee was part of the Board for the Celebration of the 50th Anniversary of the Republic. The committee included Şadi Çalık, Mustafa Aslıer, and Hüseyin Gezer. They asked 50 artists to make sculptures to celebrate the anniversary. The sculptures were put in many places around Istanbul, like parks and squares.[2]
There was not enough money to make 50 sculptures, so the number was changed to 20. The Board also made the qualifications to be a sculptor stricter. They only picked artists who lived in Istanbul and who had either won a state award or were well-known in the art world. This meant 30 artists were not able to participate.[2] The artists that did participate included Kuzgun Acar, Tamer Başoğlu, Zerrin Bölükbaşı, Ali Teoman Germaner, Yavuz Görey, Zühtü Müritoğlu, Füsun Onur, Kamil Sonad, Nusret Suman, Seyhun Topuz and Gürdal Duyar.[2][3]
The Fine Arts Committee did not tell the artists what kind of sculpture to make, so they could create something in their own unique style. The committee wanted the sculptures to be diverse and represent the different styles of sculpture in Turkey at the time.[2] The artists were also not told where their sculptures would be placed. They could be put in a park, a square, or on the side of a road.[2] The artists had to submit their ideas for the sculpture they wanted to make to the State Art and Sculpture Museum by 20 August 1973.[2]
Gürdal Duyar submitted a sketch of a nude female figure which he named "Beautiful Istanbul" (Güzel Istanbul in Turkish) as his proposal. The board approved his proposal during a meeting attended by local government officials, and selected Karaköy Square as the location for the sculpture.[4] The design and nudity of the sculpture were not considered problematic at any point during the selection process.[2]
The sculpture is also known as Ah Güzel İstanbul ("Oh Beautiful Istanbul").[5]
Design
changeGürdal Duyar's idea was to symbolize Istanbul through a sculpture of a naked woman whose arms were tied by a chain, which represented the defensive chain put up by the Byzantine Empire in 1453 to block the Ottoman fleet from entering the Golden Horn. The woman in the sculpture was trying to break free from the chains, which was supposed to represent the Ottoman conquest of Constantinople, which was later renamed Istanbul. Duyar explained that he associated his hometown, Istanbul, with the natural beauty of the female form.[6]
In Duyar's final design, the female figure is depicted leaning slightly backwards with her arms wrapped behind her, and her head inclined backwards as she gazes at the sky. Her hands are bound by a chain, which is not visible from the front.[7] The upper part of the sculpture sits on a decorated plinth adorned with reliefs of pomegranates, figs, honeysuckle, and a bee. According to Duyar, the pomegranates represent Istanbul's many legends, figs represent its divinity, honeysuckle represents its air, and the bee represents its population density, dynamism, and abundance.[8][9] Apart from its historical and political significance, Duyar's work has also been interpreted as a universal representation of women's liberation.[1][10] The sculpture, which used 7,000 kilograms (15,000 lb) of poured concrete, was 4.8 meters (15.7 ft) tall when it was first installed.[8][1]
Erection and removal
changeOn March 10, 1974, Güzel İstanbul was installed in Karaköy Square, which is an open and busy area located near the northern end of Galata Bridge in Istanbul.[2][8] The sculpture received a lot of attention and caused controversy. According to Ahu Antmen, the controversy was caused by the sculpture's placement in a crowded area. On the other hand, Onat Kutlar believed that the controversy was due to the sensuality or realism present in Duyar's sculptures, including Güzel İstanbul.[2][11]
Güzel İstanbul Affair
changeBefore Duyar's sculpture, there were other nude sculptures displayed in public areas of Istanbul,[note 1] and at that time, the Istanbul State Art and Sculpture Museum had numerous nude sculptures on display without any controversy. It has been suggested that the officials who commissioned Duyar's sculpture did not expect its nakedness to be a source of controversy.[2] However, after the sculpture was installed in Karaköy Square, it faced immediate backlash and calls for its removal from politicians who perceived it to be indecent,[10] particularly members of the National Salvation Party, who were part of the coalition government at the time.[9] This sparked a public debate that was fueled by prominent Turkish political figures and covered by major media outlets, which is now known as the Güzel İstanbul Affair.[note 3][2]
A media campaign against Güzel İstanbul started shortly after it was installed in Karaköy Square. For ten days, various newspapers described the sculpture as indecent and erotic. One newspaper, Sabah, even printed a front-page article on 21 March 1974 that accused the sculpture of corrupting the morals of Muslim Turks.[9][14] This led to the sculpture becoming a topic of discussion in the government. Deputy-Prime Minister Necmettin Erbakan called the sculpture immoral and suggested its removal on 17 March.[1][2] The Minister of the Interior, Oğuzhan Asiltürk, said that the sculpture was disgraceful to Turkish mothers and should be removed.[2][1] The mayor of Istanbul, Ahmet İsvan, said he disliked the sculpture because he found it tasteless, not because it was a nude.[1] The Governor of Istanbul, Namık Kemal Şentürk, stated that he could not judge the sculpture on an artistic level, but that it had been placed in the wrong location and thus had it removed.[1]
The controversy over Güzel İstanbul led to a heated debate, with some Republican intellectuals and others defending the sculpture and arguing for its right to remain. However, the controversy also had political implications, almost leading to the collapse of Turkey's newly formed governing coalition.[note 4][2][15] The CHP, the other party in the coalition, supported the National Salvation Party's position that the sculpture was indecent in order to avoid political conflict, despite this going against their own ethical values.[1] Some scholars, such as Hüseyin Gezer, defended the sculpture, stating that there is a difference between a naked woman and a nude sculpture.[2][1]
Removal and public backlash
changeOn the night of 18 March 1974, nine days after its installation, Güzel İstanbul was removed from Karaköy Square.[2] In a midnight intervention, the sculpture was broken off its base and damaged: its arm was broken off.[9][16] It was removed from the park and placed on a pile of sand near the Kumkapı municipal construction site.[2][1] The front page of the newspaper Milliyet showed a photograph of people standing on top of the empty plinth on the night the sculpture was removed, as well as the rubble resulting from the plinth's destruction.[17] An article in the newspaper Sabah stated the goal of their campaign to have the sculpture removed had been accomplished.[2] This was countered by articles in the newspapers Milliyet and Cumhuriyet, which described the sculpture's right to remain as a necessity for democracy.[2]
Some Turkish intellectuals reacted to the events. Burhan Felek criticized the removal, saying a sculpture should not be removed just because a minister does not like it, and that there is not a referendum of beliefs for every issue.[2] Melih Cevdet Anday criticized the government for choosing what the people should and should not like. Hıfzı Veldet Velidedeoğlu stated dominance of the mentality that puts forward religious conservative traditions in the context of fine arts would regress Turkey to a desert of bigotry.[2] Güzel İstanbul was also defended by cartoonists and caricaturists such as Erdoğan Bozok, Altan Erbulak, Nejat Uygur, Yalçın Çetin, Ferruh Doğan, and Nehar Tüblek, who made cartoons commenting on its removal. One of the cartoons showed those that removed the sculpture as backwards and outdated, another criticized the politicization of art, and another criticized censorship; and others asked why fake issues were being made in the news.[2][1]
Cartoonists and artists who opposed the removal wanted to protesting it by covering all sculptures in Istanbul in black cloth but they cancelled their protest. The removal from Karaköy Square was seen as being against freedom of expression in art; to protest this, the Association of Turkish Sculptors organized an exhibition around the theme of nudity to show that the creative will of artists would continue.[18] Many sculptors participated in the show, including Füsun Onur.[2][19]
The debate about Güzel İstanbul spread beyond Istanbul; provinces Manisa and Zonguldak offered to have Güzel İstanbul moved to their cities.[2] Güzel İstanbul was one of 20 sculptures of which many others were damaged or removed.[20]
Charges
changeOn 20 March 1974, the Istanbul Public Prosecutors Office, considering the articles published about the sculpture in newspapers as charges, opened an inquiry to decide whether the sculpture was obscene.[1] According to a news report, if the sculpture was found to be obscene, the 50th Anniversary Committee would face prosecution under articles 426 and 576 of Turkish law.[2] Mustafa Aslıer, a member of the committee, reflected on the events that led to the removal of Güzel İstanbul; he had been implicated in the statements and publications by the press and the MSP that led to the charges.[1]
Relocation
changeOn 3 May 1974, through the secret intervention of Bülent Ecevit,[note 5] Güzel İstanbul was taken to Yıldız Park and left lying on its side underneath a tree.[9] The move ended the heated political and public debate regarding the sculpture which had lasted almost two months, although Güzel İstanbul was left in an poor physical condition.[2] In the subsequent months, photographs of the sculpture lying on its side in the park appeared; several newspapers published opinion pieces — including articles by Burhan Felek and Bedi Faik — describing the sculpture being left in this state and asking why the process was disrespectful to the artwork and the artist.[9] The statue was eventually mounted onto a new makeshift plinth without the motifs, all of which had been destroyed.[note 6] As of 2021[update], the sculpture stands in a small corner near the park's Ortaköy entrance. According to some press accounts, it has not been well maintained; parts of its concrete are crumbling and its inner structure is exposed.[2][1]
Later events
changeGürdal Duyar, the sculptor of Güzel Istanbul, said little about the statue's fate and did not participate in the controversy. In 1995, Turkish journalist Nebil Özgentürk asked Duyar about the repeated removals of the artist's work. Duyar said his role as the artist was limited to creation of sculptures, adding: "Our job is making sculptures; removing, breaking or changing their location is a different area of expertise".[9][16]
In 2017, the Istanbul Municipality hid the sculpture by surrounding it with a fence made of saplings after parents had complained about it being visible from a nearby playground.[21][22] After news of this censorship spread, a campaign on social media criticized the censorship and succeeded in having the saplings removed.[1][23]
References
changeNotes
change- ↑ An example is Kâmil Sonads nude sculpture which was erected in Gülhane Park earlier under the same initiative.[12]
- ↑ Gezer, Hüseyin (1984). Cumhuriyet Dönemi Türk Heykeli [Republic Era Turkish Sculpture] (in Turkish). Istanbul: İş Bankası Kültür Yayınları. pp. 32–34. OCLC 220473477.
- ↑ In his 1984 book, Republic Era Turkish Sculpture,[note 2] Hüseyin Gezer refers to the Güzel İstanbul affair.[13]
- ↑ The CHP-MSP coalition would break up later that year.
- ↑ According to the judgement of Mustafa Aslıer who reflected on the events in a special meeting on 31 March 2007 as documented in (Antmen 2009, p. 374), it was the quite/unpublicized intervention of Bülent Ecevit that removed the sculpture from the Kumkapı municipal construction site and brought the sculpture to Yıldız Park
- ↑ Its dimensions in the current state are 274 cm x 170cm x 150cm.[21]
Citations
change- ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14 Şendul 2021.
- ↑ 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 2.12 2.13 2.14 2.15 2.16 2.17 2.18 2.19 2.20 2.21 2.22 2.23 2.24 2.25 2.26 Antmen 2009.
- ↑ İzer 2013.
- ↑ Antmen 2009, p. 369.
- ↑ T24 2017.
- ↑ Antmen 2009, p. 367.
- ↑ Sarı 2015.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 Şenol 1974.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4 9.5 9.6 Özgentürk 1995.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Uğurlu.
- ↑ Kutlar 1993.
- ↑ Antmen 2009, p. 368.
- ↑ Şendul 2021, p. 65-67.
- ↑ İhtiyar 2004.
- ↑ Türenç 2004.
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 Aydoğan 2004.
- ↑ Milliyet 1974.
- ↑ Üstünipek 2019.
- ↑ Pınarbaş 2021.
- ↑ Alsaç & Alsaç 1993.
- ↑ 21.0 21.1 Erbarıştıran 2021.
- ↑ BirGün 2017.
- ↑ Posta 2017.
Bibliography
change- Alsaç, Birsen; Alsaç, Üstün (June 1993). "II. Bölum: Yontu. ii. Cumhuriyet Dönemi" [Section II: Statue. ii. Republic Era]. Türk Resim ve Yontu Sanatı [The Art of Turkish Painting and Statue]. Cep Üniversitesi 123 (in Turkish) (1st ed.). Istanbul: İletişim Yayınları. pp. 70–75. ISBN 975-470-341-8.
- Antmen, Ahu (1 Apr 2009). "Türk Kültüründe Beden Ve "Güzel İstanbul" Olayı" [The body in Turkish culture and the "Beautiful Istanbul" affair]. Electronic Journal of Social Sciences (in Turkish). 8 (30): 366–375. ISSN 1304-0278. Retrieved 13 Jun 2022.
- Aydoğan, Bilge Evrim (May 2004). "Bir Modern Zaman Çilekeşi, Gürdal Duyar" [A present day ordeal, Gürdal Duyar]. rh+ (in Turkish). No. 10. Istanbul. pp. 25–29. ISSN 1303-751X.
- Durbaş, Refik (26 January 2017). "Pera'nın marjinal hayaleti" [Peras Marginal Ghost]. birgun.net (in Turkish). BirGün. Retrieved 18 October 2022.
- Erbarıştıran, Tufan (16 Feb 2021). "Gürdal Duyar (1935-2004): Türkiye ve Sanatta Cinsellik" [Gürdal Duyar (1935-2004): Sexuality in Turkey and in Art] (in Turkish). Oggito.
- "Güzel İstanbul Heykeli'ni kimse görmesin diye böyle çevirdiler!" [They changed the Güzel İstanbul sculpture like this so that no one would see it!]. posta.com.tr. Posta. 28 October 2017. Retrieved 13 September 2022.
- "Heykel Gitti, Kavga Bitmedi" [The sculpture is gone but the arguments continue]. Milliyet (in Turkish). 20 March 1974. Archived from the original on 12 March 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
- "Heykelin duyarlı kavgacısıydı". Radikal (in Turkish). April 2004. Retrieved 7 March 2023 – via Arkitera.
- İhtiyar, Tevfik (May 2004). "Ah Güzel Istanbul!". rh+ (in Turkish). No. 10. Istanbul. pp. 16–17. ISSN 1303-751X.
- İzer, Ayşegül (2013). "Urbs1, Megalopolis2, Metropolis3 - İstanbul". MSGSÜ Sosyal Bilimler (in Turkish) (8): 145–170. ISSN 1309-4815. Retrieved 21 Jun 2022.
- Kutlar, Onat (25 July 1993). "Çamurla Düşünen Adam" [The Man Who Thinks with Clay]. Cumhuriyet. Gündemdeki Sanatçı [Artist on the Agenda] (in Turkish). p. 2.
- "'Müstehcen' diye sürülen heykele şimdi de 'fidan sansürü'" [The sculpture that was expelled as 'obscene' now faces a 'censorship of saplings']. BirGün. 28 October 2017. Retrieved 11 September 2022.
- Özgentürk, Nebil (12 November 1995). "Mekanini arayan heykeller!" [Sculptures searching for their place!]. Bir İnsan Bin Hayat [A Person A Life]. Sabah (in Turkish). Istanbul. p. 36.
- "Paris'in simgesi olan Eyfel Kulesi de önce tepki yaratmıştı". Cumhuriyet (in Turkish). 23 March 1974. p. 6. Retrieved 12 February 2023.
Seyhun Akademide memur olarak görevli. dal Duyar'ın heykelini görmüş clmalısınız. Heykelin adı «Güzel Istanbul». Harekete hazırlaiıan bir kadın figürüyle anlatılmış. Başı hafif arksya atılmıs. Iki yanında zincirler var. Hem istanbulun fethi günlerinde Halice gerilen zincir'eri, hem de istanbulun ışgal altır.da kaldıgı günleri sembolize ediyordu. istanbul bütün bunlara rağmen silkinmeye hazır.
- Pera Museum (26 November 2015). "Çıplak Kadından Çıplak Tene". www.peramuzesi.org.tr. Retrieved 2023-03-07.
- Pınarbaş, Yener (30 April 2021). "Kadın Kimliği Ve Toplumsal Sorunlarının Çağdaş Türk Sanatına Yansımaları" [Reflections Of Women’s Identity And Their Social Problems On Comtemporary Turkish Art]. International Refereed Journal on Social Sciences (in Turkish). 7 (40): 1827–1842. eISSN 2619-936X.
- Sarı, Bayram (18 March 2015). "Çırılçıplak: Başlangıç ile bitiş ortasında ben kaldım!" [Completely Naked: I'm stuck between the beginning and the end!]. İndigo Dergisi (in Turkish). Retrieved 10 February 2023.
Hafifçe geriye uzanmış, çıplak bir kadın! Başını arkaya atmıştır nedenli nedensiz. Ön profilden bakıldığında görülmeyen ama elleri arkadan kelepçelenmiş bir kadın! Gürdal Duyar'ın Güzel İstanbul heykeli! 'Türk geleneğine ve ahlakına uygun bulunmayan' müstehcen taş! Meçhul bir yerde çirkinleşmesi için bekletilmektedir!
- Şenol, Bahattin (11 March 1974). "«Güzel Istanbul» heykeli Karaköy Meydanına kondu" [The «Güzel Istanbul» sculpture has been placed on Karaköy Square]. Milliyet (in Turkish). p. 1.
- Şendul, Zahide (2021). Türkiye'de Kamusal Alanda Soyut Heykel Uygulamalarinin Öncüleri Olarak Cumhuriyet'in 50. Yilinda İstanbul'da Yapilmiş Heykeller [The 50th Anniversary Sculptures in Istanbul as Pioneers of Public Abstract sculpture in Turkey] (PDF) (MSc) (in Turkish). Edirne: Trakya University. Archived from the original (PDF) on 7 March 2023. Retrieved 14 June 2022.
- Türenç, Tufan (24 April 2004). "Heykel öyküsü" [A sculpture story]. Hürriyet (in Turkish). Retrieved 7 March 2023 – via Arkitera.
- Uğurlu, Nurer. "Evliya Çelebi'den günümüze 'Güzel İstanbul'" (PDF). pp. 24–25.
- T24, ed. (28 October 2017). "'Ah güzel İstanbul'; 43 yıl önce 'müstehcen' deyip saldırdılar, bugün fidanlarla 'üstünü örttüler'". Yaşam. t24.com.tr. Retrieved 10 February 2023.
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: CS1 maint: numeric names: editors list (link) - Üstünipek, Mehmet (2019). "Sculpture in Istanbul". History of Istanbul: From Antiquity to the 21st Century. Vol. 7. ISAM: Türkiye Diyanet Foundation Center for Islamic Studies. Retrieved 19 October 2022.
Other websites
change- Güzel İstanbul documentary Hiç Bilmiyordum, Season 2. Episode 8. – via GAİN (subscription required)
- Güzel İstanbul, Beşiktaş Kültür Sanat – via Beşiktaş Municipality