At its height in the 16th and 17th centuries, the Ottoman Empire was a colorful ethnic mosaic. Numerous ethnic groups exchanged techniques, raw materials and traditions resulting in a unique stylistic confluence known as the Ottoman style.
Silks from Aleppo and Damascus, muslin from Mosul, and Egyptian cotton were dyed with vibrant plant pigments derived from insects, such as chelac, plants, such as saffron and pistachio, and precious stones, such as lapis lazuli. Embellishments—fur trim, gold appliqué, beading and leather—were embroidered onto the costumes of members of the imperial court and various ethnic groups to demonstrate their class and wealth.
In the exhibition you will find illustrations of travelers in Asia Minor from mid 1500s to the early 1900s from the digital collection "Travelogues" by Aikaterini Laskaridis Foundation.
The subject is the people of Anatolia: Ottoman officials, dervishes, European diplomats, Greeks from Asia Minor, members of various ethnic groups, but also many women. Women in travel iconography hold a special place. Upper class Greek women, Muslim ladies in everyday and festive clothes, Armenians, gypsies, Circassians, Jewish women of the high class, with their sartorial cornucopia caught the eye of the artists who usually accompanied the travelers and were immortalized in the lithographs that adorned the travel books.
These portraits were done quickly and with considerable risk, because the muslims, due to religion and superstition, did not easily acquiesce to pose for a portrait. If the traveler was himself a painter, like Cornelis de Bruijn, the 17th-century Dutch artist and traveler, his care in capturing stylistic and other details right ensured a level of validity for scholars. We also owe de Bruyne the first color prints, in his publication "Voyage au Levant" (Journey to the East) in 1698.
Besides portraits, Genre Painting was also of great interest: the drawings capture the daily activities, intimate family scenes, music and dance events, trade and religious ceremonies, gruesome scenes from prisons and executions, but also testimonies of events, historical scenes that took place, such as official visits or processions of officials.
The man-made environment of Anatolia, as illustrated by travelers, illuminates life during the Ottoman Empire and the diverse ethnological mosaic of Asia Minor. The illustrations along with the travelogues candidly capture everyday moments and eloquently tell the story of the colorful peoples of Anatolia, demonstrating the exotic attraction that Orientalism exerted on the Western gaze.
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The exhibition contains items from the following institutions:
