Turkey boasts one of the richest artistic histories in the world, with artworks and traditions dating back long before the Ottoman Empire. Calligraphy featured widely on most documents, and even on dull papers such as tax reports.
However, when the Republic of Turkey was formed in 1923, a significant artistic transition occurred. Artists moved from Islamic artistic traditions of the Ottoman period to a more secular Western orientation. This resulted in a mixture of European styles, with some artists adopting the abstract Cubist and Constructivist influences or working in abstract styles with a political message.
Turkish art has generally followed Western trends since the 1940s while also retaining links to local styles and messages.
"Today Turkish artists live around the world and their oeuvre draws on a broad range of ideas," Arhan Kayar, director of Art Beat Istanbul, told Weekend Review.
In the past five to ten years, Turkey has experienced an art-market boom, and Istanbul has now become home to more than 250 galleries, a modern art museum and a number of non-profit art organisations, he said.
"This has created wider public understanding of contemporary art, with galleries helping shape the tastes of Turkish collectors." For these reasons, the new contemporary fair Art Beat Istanbul will launch to coincide with the 12th Istanbul Biennial this month.
The idea for the fair came as a response to Istanbul's "growing contemporary art scene and Turkey's emerging art market", Kayar continued. In recent years, there has been speculation about the Turkish art market, he said, and so Art Beat Istanbul was conceived as a way to overcome some of the "hype" and as a way to offer galleries and artists a platform to introduce themselves directly to art professionals, collectors and enthusiasts.
Being held in the Lufti Kirdar Convention and Exhibition Centre in the centre of the city, from September 14 to September 18, the fair will house more than 25 galleries from around the world. A series of talks surrounding the contemporary art topic will also be held. This worldly element aims to bring an international focus to the existing contemporary art scene.
"If the Turkish art market is to have any real future, it needs to move beyond its borders and have an international audience. The aim is to create an annual contemporary art fair for both Turkish and international galleries, where international visitors can buy Turkish art, and vice versa," Kayar said.
Perhaps one of the best-known artists to be exhibiting at the inaugural Art Beat Istanbul is controversial British talent Tracey Emin.
The female artist shot to fame in 1999 when her My Bed installation was shortlisted for the Turner prize. While it didn't actually win it, the notoriety of the piece remained.
Charles Saatchi later bought the piece for £150,000 (Dh911,000) and it was displayed in the first exhibition at the Saatchi Gallery's new premises in London's County Hall. Saatchi later installed the bed in a special room in his own house.
Emin's piece for Art Beat Istanbul forms a neon sign, which in Turkish writing says "Bosver, Bosver, Arkadasim Aglamak Guze", meaning: "It doesn't matter, it doesn't matter, crying is good."
Gurhan Coskun, also known as "Komet", is one of Turkey's most renowned painters. After completing his studies at the Istanbul State Academy of Fine Arts in 1967 he moved to Paris and now splits his time and work between the two cities. His work has been shown in various museums around the world, including the Vienna Museum of Modern Art.
With more than 20 solo exhibitions under his belt, Komet is also one of the more prolific painters to be exhibiting at the first Art Beat Istanbul.
Commercial gains
The art fair aims to distinguish itself from other fairs by providing space for exhibitors to present to art professionals and enthusiasts from around the world, and allocating space for booths and art installations to provide a cultural atmosphere that is also of commercial value.
While the Turkish art market was worth $5 million (Dh18.4 million) in 2001, it grew twentyfold in nine years to reach $105 million in early 2011.
"The Turkish art market has grown beyond expectation, fuelled by Turkey's economic transformation and a new breed of art collectors keen to invest in tangible assets. We have seen record prices being set by Turkish modern and contemporary artists at international auctions," Kayar said.
For instance, last year renowned contemporary artist Ahmet Gunestekin was slated to set records for his Religions series of paintings, valued at 7.5 million Turkish lira (Dh15.4 million). The artwork titled Doors Opening to the Sun was alone valued at 3.5 million Turkish lira during the same auction in late 2010; and according to industry reports he has sold 27 pieces in the past year to the tune of $914,000.
"The work of Turkish artists can now be found in important international collections, including Hale Tenger in the Centre Pompidou and Selma Gurbuz in the Tate Modern, and artists such as Kutlug Ataman have even been shortlisted for the Turner prize," Kayar said.
"All this has been fantastic for showcasing the range of Turkey's artists and creating interest from local and international collectors," he added.
The 12th Istanbul Biennial will have a professional preview on September 15 and September 16. "The Istanbul Biennial will give the participating galleries an opportunity to present themselves to a broad range of visitors who come to the city to see contemporary art," Kayar said.
This year's biennial will explore the relationship between art and politics, with a focus on artworks exuding innovation and political outspokenness. In this regard, the work of Cuban-American artist Felix Gonzalez-Torres (1957-1996) was a major inspiration for the biennial, as his works are a clear example of this artistic practice. Gonzalez-Torres named most of his works "Untitled" and followed them up with a description, which is why the biennial is formally called Untitled (12th Istanbul Biennial) 2011. The event, which will include five group shows and about 45 solo works, will be hosted in a single space this year. Each of the five themes refers to works by Gonzalez-Torres: Untitled (Passport); Untitled (Ross); Untitled (Death by Gun); Untitled (Abstraction); and Untitled (History).
"We want Art Beat Istanbul to become an important art event in the region. In the coming years we are planning to broaden our programme and collaborate with international art organisations to offer our visitors something unique," Kayar said.
