BETWEEN TWO CONTINENTS: LOST ON THE PENINSULA
08-09-2023
12:06
Istanbul. The city at the point where the continents of Europe and Asia meet. It merges with the blue of the Bosphorus, which connects the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmara.
The Historical Peninsula, in addition to being the oldest settlement in Istanbul, further strengthens the meaning of its name with the countless historical artifacts it contains. Here, both above and below the ground are full of riches.
There were many times when I thought I was designing and producing within a natural open-air museum.
When I started working in the region in 1999, I have many memories of feeling like I was in a country where I didn't know the language.
The region has grown into a jewellery and metal home accessories neighbourhood where work has been done using traditional production methods within the framework of male-dominated and master-apprentice relationships for centuries.
Masters and company owners who used traditional methods of production based on verbal trust gradually began to work with women in the 2000s.
When I started working in the region as a university educated woman and designer, there were many years when I struggled to breathe like a fish out of water and did not know how to act.
Jewelers and metalworkers in and around the Grand Bazaar say, ''The Bazaar is a university.'' My definition: Open Air Museum - Experience Area.
In the Historical Peninsula, where I produced the majority of my designs between 1997 and 2017, the tension of the design and production processes was always high with the excitement of history, culture and discovery.
I think that working in the region has contributed greatly to the development of a language in my designs.
I continue my work by collaborating with the masters in Yarımda, who have played a major role in my learning about the trade and cultural dynamics of the city I live in.
Ozlem Tuna
The Historical Peninsula, in addition to being the oldest settlement in Istanbul, further strengthens the meaning of its name with the countless historical artifacts it contains. Here, both above and below the ground are full of riches.
There were many times when I thought I was designing and producing within a natural open-air museum.
When I started working in the region in 1999, I have many memories of feeling like I was in a country where I didn't know the language.
The region has grown into a jewellery and metal home accessories neighbourhood where work has been done using traditional production methods within the framework of male-dominated and master-apprentice relationships for centuries.
Masters and company owners who used traditional methods of production based on verbal trust gradually began to work with women in the 2000s.
When I started working in the region as a university educated woman and designer, there were many years when I struggled to breathe like a fish out of water and did not know how to act.
Jewelers and metalworkers in and around the Grand Bazaar say, ''The Bazaar is a university.'' My definition: Open Air Museum - Experience Area.
In the Historical Peninsula, where I produced the majority of my designs between 1997 and 2017, the tension of the design and production processes was always high with the excitement of history, culture and discovery.
I think that working in the region has contributed greatly to the development of a language in my designs.
I continue my work by collaborating with the masters in Yarımda, who have played a major role in my learning about the trade and cultural dynamics of the city I live in.
Ozlem Tuna