Academic literature on the topic 'Turkish Decorative arts'

In tile art, one of the world-famous Turkish Handicrafts, a wide variety of patterns are used on tile objects. The most common of these, after the tulip pattern, is the naturalist clove pattern. Different meanings were assigned to this pattern within the boundaries of form, color and design. Identification and perception of these meanings have a special place within the frame of the culture that they relay. In this present study the fields of meaning of the clove pattern frequently used in tile decoration arts among Turkish handicrafts were tried to be determined. By taking Greimas' Actantial Model as the theoretical model, in the study visual discourse analysis of the clove pattern will be made.

AbstractSources show that the Flemish artist Johannes Stradanus, whose career flourished from about 1555 in Florence, collaborated on several occasions on large-scale, temporary decorations, most of them commissioned by the grand dukes de'Medici, for important dynastic events such as baptisms, entries into cities and funerals. A multitude of artists and craftsmen carried out these decorations on the basis of often complicated iconographic programmes. In 1564, for instance, on the occasion of Michelangelo's funeral in S. Lorenzo, Stradanus painted the grisaille Michelangelo in 1529 in his dwelling in the Giudecca being received by the nobles of Venice by order of the Doge Andrea Gritti and the Signoria. In 1565, for the triumphal entry into the city of Johanna of Austria, he painted all the pictures decorating the triumphal arch erected on the Canto de' Tornaquinci. These consisted of five scenes glorifying the following exploits of rulers of the House of Austria: Rudolf conferring the Archdukedom of Austria on Albrecht I, Maximilian II being crowned emperor, Ferdinand I defending Vienna against the Turks, Albrecht slaing Adolf of Nassau in a battle, Philip II of Spain receiving the corona obsidionalis from Malta and two large trompe-l'oeil street views. In 1574, for the funeral of Cosimo I de'Medici in S. Lorenzo, Stradanus was probably involved in the painting of the skeletons and coats of arms. Furthermore, on the occasion of Francesco I de' Medici's funeral in S. Lorenzo in 1587, he painted the grisaille Francesco visiting his betrothed, Johanna of Austria, in Innsbruck; in 1588, for the entry of Ferdinando I de' Medici into Pisa, the canvas The burial of Pope Stephen I in the catacomb of Callixtus for the decoration of S. Stefano dei Cavalieri; in 1589, for the entry of Christina of Lorraine, the painting The retreat of the Turks after the siege of Vienna, as part of the decorations on the Canto de' Bischeri. Finally, in 1598, for the obsequies in memory of Philip II of Spain in S. Lorenzo, the grisaillc The siege and capture of Antwerp; for the same occasion he also provided the design for the grisaille The conquest of the Philippine islands, painted by his son Scipione. Stradanus' first commissions date from the start of his career in Florence, when he was working in Vasari's studio. As one of the master's assistants in decorating the Palazzo Vecchio, he had already gained ample experience in large-scale painting for the Medici. After leaving Vasari's studio in about 157 and setting up as an independent artist, Stradanus remained one of the leading Florentine artists who received commissions for official large-scale decors. He retained this status up to a venerable age, a sign of the appreciation he continued to enjoy in this field. Unfortunately none of Stradanus' decorative work has survived, with the exception of the canvas in Pisa. An impression of his skill in this field in conveyed by contemporary sources and the sketches, drawings, etchings and engravings presented in this article. This material clearly shows that in his long and productive life Stradanus was not only active as a painter of frescos and altarpieces and a designer of tapestries and engravings, but also played a prominent role at the court of the Medici as a painter of decorations.

The quatrefoil motif is a popular ornament in Sakha decorative and folk arts and crafts. It is popular not only in Yakutia, but all over the world. Until now, however, there have been no generalized works on this ornamental motif. Its symbolic signs have not been studied. Our study has revealed that the quatrefoil motif in ornamentation and decorative art dates back to the Neolithic period in the Halaf culture of Mesopotamia around 5765 BC. A number of researchers believe that this motif was a symbol of male fertility. We hypothesized that the quatrefoil motif probably appeared in the seals of Caucasian persimmon merchants and depicted the quatrefoil of its calyx. Thanks to the growing influence of trade, this motif has spread around the world. The oriental persimmon, as an important product for the well-being of the ancient Chinese population, became an image of the quatrefoil motif, which was adopted by the Xiongnu as a symbol of protection and resurrection. From them, the motif probably spread widely among the Turkic peoples. The Sakha apparently borrowed this motif from the Xiongnu, as indicated by the abundance of ornamental forms and the presence of archaeological, anthropological, and genetic data, which show the existence of sufficiently close links with the Xiongnu culture. The quatrefoil motif similar to the decorative forms of Gothic cathedrals was probably introduced to the Middle Lena by representatives of the Chaatas and Tyukhtyat cultures in Khakassia.

The article is devoted to the artistic legacy of Merited Artist of the Republic of Bashkortostan Talgat Masalimov — painter, graphic artist and master of decorative applied art. his work is examined in the article in the context of the processes taking place in the contemporary visual arts, marked with an exploration of new plastic means. The authors regard the legacy of Masalimov as a vivid example of the simultaneous influence of folk art, its symbolism and graphic structure, Eastern (Turkic) traditions and those of the Russian avant-garde with its aspiration towards primitive, laconic, conditional forms. The article cites examples among works of the artist created in the technique of graphics, pastel and artistic felt. At the core of the creation of these works lies the knowledge of principles of construction of the composition and depictive techniques characteristic for the Russian avant-garde and Early Russian icon-painting and Iranian miniatures, with an absence of direct associations with any concrete epoch or artistic direction. The authors see in the work of the artist a vivid example of the preservation and expansion of the heritage of the past, its development and enrichment by means of contemporary plastic arts.

The article focuses on the origin of the image of a dragon with a serpentine body known in the early medieval antiquities of Eastern European nomads. Researchers have long been discussing such images found on the sites of the Volga region and the Urals. According to the most recent hypothesis proposed by N.A. Lifanov, these dragon figures generally match the image of ancient κyτος which was adopted as a result of the acquaintance of the steppe inhabitants with works of late antique or early Byzantine art. The present study addresses a wide range of sources allowing us to construct an alternative version of the genesis of the dragon image. The group of images of fantastic creatures associated with early Buddhist art can be found in East Turkestan. They show immediate morphological and stylistic conformity with Eastern European images. They are also similar to the figures of Sogdian mural and plastic arts. East Turkestan’s images reproduce the well-known patterns of the Buddhist art of Gandhara. Gandhara figures originate from the images of κÞτεα and other widespread in Hellenistic art of Bactria sea monsters. KÞτεα which were companions of sea deities in classical mythology were seamlessly included in the decoration of headwear of Buddha sculptures, worship or relic veneration scenes. They are often found on the architectural details of stūpas. Some believe that κÞτεα evolved from the creation of sea into the creation of sea, air, and earth in the Indo-Greek tradition. They became mediators between worlds. Finally, they could exercise some sort of soteriological function. Apparently, Turkic peoples who were actively involved in all processes that took place in Central Asia and East Turkestan could comprehend these properties. So, the κÞτεα images could be reinterpreted and integrated into their imagery.

Most of the necropolis investigated in the Lower Danube basin have been generally dated between the 12th and 14th centuries. However, the grave finds indicate that there are significant differences between certain necropolis and against that background it is apparent that they could not date from the same time period. The main characteristic of the necropolis in Korbovo Vajuga and Prahovo are numerous bracelets and various variants of the earrings with biconical pendants. There were also found the earrings with granulated nodules, hoops with coils of wire on their lower segment and earring with spherical pendant decorated with the pseudo granulation. The necropolis at the sites Svetinja in Stari Kostolac and the cemeteries at Mala Vrbica, Klicevac and Coka Arte are also chronologically close to the above mentioned necropolis. Another group includes the necropolis at which the mentioned finds are entirely lacking. These are the necropolis Kod Groblja in Stari Kostolaca as well as the cemeteries at Cezava, Manastir, Boljetin Ravna, Hajducka Vodenica, Usce Porecke reke, Ljubicevac and Mihajlovac. Between these two groups of clearly distinguished necropolis are the cemeteries at Ribnica and Brza Palanka characterized by the mixed finds known from both groups of the necropolis. The beginning of interment in the cemeteries at Korbovo, Prahovo and Svetinja could be dated not before the second half of the 12th century, while at Vajuga it is more precisely dated in the end of that century. The question is how long these cemeteries could have been in use. The coin finds confirm without doubt that they had been in use during the first decades of the 13th century and the cessation of burying could be related to the Mongolian invasion, which affected these regions in the beginning of the fifth decade of the 13th century at the latest. The gradual disappearance of the earlier jewelry could be observed through the rare finds in the 13th century cemeteries, while they are entirely lacking in the later burials. The changes in the inventory of the necropolis relate also to the appearance of new decorative objects including the jewelry made of small ornamental plates or the earrings shaped as question mark. Generally speaking, these cemeteries are characterized by smaller quantity of grave goods and among them are much more frequent the elements of clothing (buckles, buttons, clasps), which are almost entirely lacking in the earlier cemeteries. It could not be precisely established how long these cemeteries had been in use only on the basis of the grave finds but the cessation of burying could be indirectly related to the Turkish conquest of this part of the Danube valley.

Wood is a kind of material that humanity has used continuously since the day it existed. Wood materials that have been used in many areas of life in the historical process has also been preferred in handicrafts. Moreover, these materials have been used continuously in Turkish Handicrafts from past to present. Especially the Anatolian Seljuks showed original examples of wood materials art in works such as pulpit, mihrab, sarcophagus, lectern, door, and window wings. Kündekari and wood carving technique, which is a kind of interlacing technique in decoration, has been applied in walnut, ebony, rose, and oak wood materials. On the other hand, different surface coating processes such as painting and polishing were applied to these materials for decoration. Wood art continued to increase with wood carving techniques such as inlay, openwork bonding, tarsi, and Edirnekari in the Ottoman. There has been an increase in the variety of wood materials used with the increasing techniques. Hence, original wood samples were given in Ottoman wood art with a variety of materials and rich decoration techniques.

Apart from the use of inscribed arts directly in book arts; textile, architecture, stone carving, ceramics, glass works, leather works are used as an element of decoration in many handicrafts. Turkish fabrics with rich ornament motifs have an important place in the textiles due to their religious and political qualities. At the same time, the message in the other motifs can be make to the person's interpretation, while in the printed fabric this message is given directly. In the study, 4 textiles in the fabric collection of the Anatolian collector Prof. Dr. Kenan Ozbel will be discussed. The aim of the research is to examine four fabrics with self-patterned inscriptions on them. Scanning and description methods were applied in the research. In the first part of the study, information about inscribed fabrics were given. In the second part, the information about the width, weaving structure and raw materials of the four samples examined are presented in a table. In the conclusion part, a comparative evaluation of the samples in the Özbel collection were made with other written fabrics. Keywords: Written fabric, Kenan Ozbel, Beledi, Sevai

In tile art, one of the world-famous Turkish handicrafts, a wide variety of patterns are used on tile objects. The most common of these, after the tulip pattern, is the naturalist clove pattern. Different meanings are assigned to this pattern within the boundaries of form, color, and design. Identification and perception of these meanings has a special place within the frame of the culture that they relay. In this present study, the fields of meaning of the clove pattern frequently used in tile decoration arts among Turkish handicrafts are determined. By taking Greimas' Actantial Model as the theoretical model visual discourse analysis of the clove pattern is made.