Turkish Arts & Music
A look at the traditional arts and music of Turkey.
Traditional Arts of Turkey
Turkey is home to artistic traditions born out of both wealthy urban centers and the folk customs of its people. The nomadic heritage of its people encouraged the development of textile arts, but states like the Seljuks and Ottomans also funded more formal schools of art. The most visible remnants of their empires are the mosques still dotting Turkey today. Turkish mosque design in particular took cues from earlier Christian structures of the Byzantine Empire, most notably the Hagia Sophia. Ottoman mosques tended to feature large, airy domes adorned with vibrant patterns and flanked by thin, pointed minarets.
This mix of artistic influences can be found in other traditional Turkish arts. China, Persia, the Arab world, and Europe all played a significant role in the expression of Seljuk and Ottoman artists. Toward the end of the Ottoman era, some of its artists traveled abroad to study in France and Italy. They brought back cutting-edge art styles like impressionism and cubism, transforming and expanding Turkish arts. At the same time, their traditional forms persisted, leading to the complex art scene of present-day Turkey.
Turkish Textiles
The Seljuks and Ottomans specialized in textile production using silk, cotton, and wool fabrics. Silk in particular was a highly lucrative and regulated Ottoman industry. Turkish workshops grew famous for their skills in dying, weaving, and embroidery. They produced these goods for both domestic markets, catered mainly to the daily needs of peasants and the upper classes, and for export. High foreign demand for Turkish rugs spurred the development of its first major mechanized industries. These carpets are famed for their deep colors and elaborate geometric patterns.
Turkish Paintings and Calligraphy
Like many Islamic cultures, the Ottoman Turks embraced calligraphy and Arabic script. Royal courts issued proclamations and mundane paperwork in the Diwani style, an exclusive Turkish school of calligraphy. Featuring interlaced characters, often combined into a single artistic form, Diwani is still practiced in Turkey today.
Islamic art generally avoids the depiction of sentient beings, but this rule has never been universal. The Turks learned the art of miniature painting from the Persians and soon adapted it to their own tastes. State-sponsored workshops trained artists to illustrate holy texts and histories, often pulled from non-Turkish populations. Painting diverged into two main branches; one that depicted human beings and their actions, and one that depicted the beauty and patterns of the natural world. One popular style, Ebru art, uses pigments floating in water to decorate or ‘marble’ paper before further painting.
During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Turkish artists traveled to centers of art in Europe, where they studied French and Italian techniques. Western artists had, for some time, been fascinated by Orientalism, the exoticized depiction of Asian and Middle Eastern peoples. Turkish artists like Osman Hamdi Bey, Halil Pasha, ‘Şeker’ Ahmed Pasha, and Süleyman Seyyid Bey were among the early generations of artists who presented a real Turkish perspective in Western-style painting. Many founded or taught in Turkish schools, which continued to explore new trends in modern art.
Ceramics in Turkish Art
Another major craft in Turkish history is ceramics. Anatolia sat at the heart of the old Silk Road trade routes. Because of this, its people enjoyed access to the finest ceramics of China and Persia as they traveled to hungry markets. This led to a domestic ceramics industry, including finely glazed and painted tableware, vessels, and tiles. Painted tiles became a Turkish specialty in their own right. They decorated many upper-class buildings, mosques, and gardens. They were often installed to form larger, vibrant panels of flowers, birds, calligraphy, and geometric patterns. These historic tiles have survived in many of Turkey’s mosques and public monuments and are also produced by modern artisans.
Music and Dance of Turkey
The traditional music of Turkey is similarly derived from folk, Islamic, Byzantine, and European customs. The early Ottomans imported Persian musicians, but they soon developed their own formal styles. Most Ottoman pieces were performed indoors for private audiences. Belly dancing, for example, began as a dance performed for the wives and concubines of sultans. A typical composed work, or fasil, consisted of both organized and improvised instrumental sections. Musicians were generally accompanied by multiple singers and dancers, both male and female. By the 19th and 20th centuries, Ottoman musicians were also studying and composing in Western musical styles.
This give and take of culture went both ways. Ottoman musicians attached to Janissary corps proved highly popular in Europe. Though not the first musicians to accompany warriors into battle, they are believed to be the first military marching bands. Janissary bands became a fashionable gift from the Ottoman court to the royalty of Europe. Modern orchestras owe their percussion sections to this 18th century fascination with Turkish music. The drum major batons used by modern marching bands are similarly Turkish in origin.
The folk music and dance of Turkey varies by region. These songs may be played for special occasions or for general entertainment. Wandering musicians, or ozan, became a popular staple in the coffeehouses of Ottoman Turkey. Among their instruments were the bağlama, a type of lute; the zurna reed woodwind; davul drums; ney flutes; and the kemenche, similar to a fiddle. The poetry of Turkey was, in many cases, written to be performed in song.
Modern Arts in Turkey
After the fall of the Ottoman Empire, the modern Republic of Turkey faced a creative challenge. Its leaders sought to embrace modernity and Western customs without losing their Turkish cultural heritage. They not only sponsored education but also efforts to document and preserve the folk music of rural Anatolia. This same balance of Turkish identity in a changing world motivates many of its contemporary artists.
References
Akombo, David. The Unity of Music and Dance in World Cultures. McFarland. 2016.
Cevik, Gulen. “Turkey.” Diversity in Design: Perspectives from the Non-Western World. Vibhavari Jani, ed. A&C Black. 2011.
Faroqhi, Suraiya. Subjects of the Sultan: Culture and Daily Life in the Ottoman Empire. I.B. Tauris. 2005.
Finkel, Caroline. Osman’s Dream: The History of the Ottoman Empire. Basic Books. 2005.
Howard, Douglas Arthur. The History of Turkey. Greenwood Press. 2001.
Kandiyoti, Deniz and Ayşe Saktanber, eds. Fragments of Culture: The Everyday of Modern Turkey. I.B. Tauris. 2002.
Quataert, Donald. The Ottoman Empire, 1700-1922. Cambridge University Press. 2005.
Shaw, Wendy. Ottoman Painting: Reflections of Western Art from the Ottoman Empire to the Turkish Republic. I.B. Tauris. 2011.
“The World Factbook: Turkey.” Central Intelligence Agency, Central Intelligence Agency, 20 June 2018, www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/tu.html.
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