A Matraki Ottoman Star

As part of the Türkiye Culture Route Festival organized by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of Türkiye, the "A Matraki Ottoman Star" project, designed by the İstanbul Intercultural Art Dialogues Association (IKASD), will be held at the Adana City Museum from April 13 to 21, 2024.

The "Rise Period" of Ottoman history begins with Fatih Sultan Mehmed, continues with Sultan Bayezid II, and develops further under Yavuz Sultan Selim. The Empire truly defines its character after the first quarter of the 16th century. During this era, with the strength from the brilliant victories of Sultan Süleyman the Magnificent, the Ottoman Empire reached its peak in all areas.

A prominent figure nurtured within this civilization, highly esteemed and valued, is "Nasuh bin Karagöz bin Abdullah al-Bosnavi," known as "Matrakçı Nasuh." Through his works and achievements, Nasuh illuminated and made understandable his era.

In his work "Beyân-ı Menâzil-i Sefer-i Irâkeyn-i Sultân Süleymân Hân" (The Account of the Stages of the Campaign of Irâkeyn by Sultân Süleymân Hân), covering the first Iranian campaign of Kanuni Sultan Süleyman between 1533-1536, he introduces himself as "Nasuh es-Silahi eş-şehir bi-Matraki." This work, along with others, starts a tradition of "Ottoman Landscape Painting" and topographic maps that extend beyond traditional molds, pioneering the "topographic image" tradition that lasted until the end of the 18th century.

The project "A Matraki Ottoman Star," curated by Beste Gürsu, connects the travel routes depicted in Matrakçı Nasuh's "Beyân-ı Menâzil-i Sefer-i Irâkeyn-i Sultân Süleymân Hân" with the overlapping routes of the Türkiye Culture Route Festival conducted by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of Türkiye. This project will meet art lovers starting from Adana and proceeding to Van, Erzurum, Konya, İstanbul, and Diyarbakır.

Artists from different disciplines of traditional and contemporary arts, including Deniz Erdoğan (Tile), Göksu Gül (Painting), Özgür Dönmez (Felt), S.Beyza Umurca (Kaat-ı), Şehnaz Bicer (Miniature), and Zehra Akdeniz (Calligraphy, Illumination), interpret Matrakçı Nasuh's city paintings. Together with the Digital İstanbul miniature and narratives from international Ottoman historians, the project sheds light on Matrakçı Nasuh and the 16th century of the Ottoman era.