A FUSION OF EAST AND WEST
By Rania Habib, Staff Reporter
Gulf News, United Arab Emirates
Nov 18 2006
Abu Dhabi: I took a walk through the opulence of ancient Turkey,
the mysticism of the orientalists, and the lavishness of Istanbul’s
Dolmabahce Palace … all in the comfort of the Cultural Foundation’s
halls, temporarily converted into a testament to the fusion of Eastern
and Western civilisations.
‘From the Ottoman Court Collection’, a historical exhibition running
until November 24 and comprising more than 200 unique items of work
from the collections of the Dolmabahce Palace, is a sneak peek at
19th century Turkey, a country that symbolises the East’s gateway to
the West, and the West’s answer to the search for exoticism.
Wandering through the intricate carpets, the colours and vivid
portrayals of orientalist artists, and the designs of Turkish Sultans,
I stepped into a reverie guided by the exhibition’s curator, Hoda
Kanoo, founder of the Abu Dhabi Music and Arts Foundation (ADMAF).
"The orientalist period was at its peak during the 19th century,"
said Kanoo. "European artists came to Turkey, and while some
orientalists are known to paint from their imagination, others relate
to reality. Most of what is here is rooted in the reality of what
Turkey was like back then."
A painting of the Dolm-abahce Palace bears witness to the structure’s
East-meets-West design.
Located at the edge of the Bosphorus, the palace was designed by
Armenian architect Nikogos Balyan, and built upon the order of the
31st Sultan Abdul Mecid between 1843 and 1856. It became the most
important symbol of Ottoman modernisation, during a time of artistic,
economic and social reform.
"The style of the Dolmabahce Palace is more baroque and rococo,
more like a European Palace," says Hoda.
"The style is Westernised even in the landscaping of the gardens.
"In Islamic designs, there would be a fountain in the middle and
gardens around, but at this palace, there are several separated
gardens, like at the Palais de Versailles in France."
Sutlans moved into the Dolmabahce Palace and never went back to Topkapi
Palace, which housed all the Ottoman sultans for nearly four centuries.
The samples of furniture from the Dolmabahce Palace on display at the
Cultural Foundation are embellished with trademark mother of pearl,
blended with baroque, rococo and sometimes neogothic art.
The cutlery of the time is luxurious – gold-plated plates, spoons
and forks replaced the more humble ceramics. Silk fabrics (damas)
remain colourful and threaded with silver, but are used to make
European-style clothing.
"Islamic art was still flourishing at the time," says Hoda. "But both
movements, European and Islamic, were moving at the same time."
The sultans themselves delved into the arts, and the arts subsequently
became a must. It was taught at home, members of the army were
encouraged to get creative, and artists were given titles like
‘efendi’.
The exhibition includes an ornate chair designed by Sultan Abdul Hamid,
who was a skilled carpenter and a mother of pearl master, as well as
a stunning work of gold calligraphy on black wood made by him.
The 19th century is also exemplified by a telephone specially designed
for the sultan that stands on four legs in the form of a lion’s paw
and bears the ruler’s signature engraved on metal plates attached to
both sides of the wooden case.
Artists such as Fausto Zonaro, Abdul Mecid Efendi, Jean Baptiste
Leprince, Osman Hamdi and Peter von Hess bring to life the time of
the great merge between East and West.
Profile: Dolmabahce Palace
– Six sultans (Sultan Abdul Mecid, Sultan Abdul Aziz, Sultan Abdul
Hamid II, Sultan Mehmed Resad V, Sultan Mehmed Vahiddein VI) and the
last Caliph, Abdul Mecid Efendi, lived in the Dolmabahce Palace from
1856 until 1924.
– During the time of Gazi Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, founder of the modern
Turkish Republic, the palace was used as the Presidential Office in
Istanbul. Ataturk spent his last days here.
– When Ataturk died on the morning of November 10, 1933, every clock
in the palace was stopped at exactly 9:05, the moment of his death.
To this day, not a clock in the palace shows any time but 9:05.
– The palace has 285 rooms, 43 large halls and six Turkish baths.
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