|
|
| |
|
THE STORY INSIDE THE WOOD |
|
The art of woodworking, which is observed both in architecture
and on decorative objects, produced some of its most beautiful
examples in the Ottoman period,
|
The
'kıblenüma', which showed the direction of the Kaaba in Mecca,
was so small as to be portable, 18th century
|
|
In Islamic
art, woodworking developed in parallel with the other arts,
exhibiting in different periods
a
rich variety that incorporated many regional influences. We see
it in architecture in columns and their capitals, and on
supporting elements like beams; as a decorative elements on
doors and shutters, pulpits, mosque niches, ceiling ornaments,
and balcony railings; on furniture such as lecterns, Koran
stands, turban stands, trousseau chests and tables, and as
accessories.
|
|
This Kuran stand in the
shape of a four-sided prism with short legs and a
dome-shaped cover, used ivory inlay on ebony veneer. With
five sections for storing a Kuran and smaller seperately
bound sections of the Kuran. First half of 16th century |
A RICH
SYNTHESIS
Among the
Ottoman craftsmen, woodworking artists applied their skill
to wood of all kinds with supreme mastery, using techniques
of wood decoration associated particularly with building
design in Anatolia. The works that have survived despite
wood's non-durability
as a
material show that these rnaster woodworkers were
well-acquainted with the various species of tree, choosing
the appropriate materials for the location and the technique
to be used. Walnut, apple, pear, cedar, oak, ebony and
rosewood were the most popular raw materials, depending on
the technique to be employed.
A more eclectic style of expression is observed in the
Umayyad and Abbasid periods (7th-10th century), the earliest
era of Islamic art. But wood workmanship developed in
particular in the Seljuk period in Anatolia, where it
acquired a unique and original character. |
Anatolian
Seljuk wood workmanship produced its most mature examples in
both quantity and quality by combining the styles and techniques
brought by the Turks to Anatolia with local styles of decoration
in a new synthesis. A rich decorative style is observed in this
period, consisting of floral and geometric designs, inscriptions
and, albeit fewer in number, figural images as well. In
Anatolian Seljuk wood workmanship, carving is the technique most
appropriate to, and most frequently employed for, the decorative
style in which thuluth inscriptions and palmette and
half-palmette motifs are often used amid rum! branches and
tendrils.
Decorations
incorporating geometric patterns also occupy an important place
in Seijuk wood workmanship. The 'kundekari' technique is used
especially on large surfaces such as doors, shutters, pulpits
and wood panel/ing. Pieces of wood cut in lozenge, star or
octagonal shapes are joined together inside regularly hollowed
out strips of wood in an interlocking pattern.
|
THE
OTTOMAN STYLE IN ART
The period
of the Principalities, which gradually established hegemony
over 14th century Anatolia, coincided with the transition to
Ottoman art. The wood workmanship used particularly for
architectural elements such as pulpits, mosque doors, and
other doors shutters in the periods of the Seijuks and the
Principalities found
a much
broader area of application in the Ottoman period. The
professional organization of wood workers, the foundations
of which were laid by Sultan Mehmed the Conqueror in Edirne
in the 15th century and completed by the end of the century
during the reign of Sultan BayezidII in the establishment of
the Privy Architects' Hearth in Topkapı Palace, were
influential in determining the artistic style of Ottoman
wood workmanship.
When we
consider that Mimar Sinan, who was trained by the Hearth,
which was responsible for carrying out and overseeing all
construction activity in the Empire, first learned carpentry
here before architecture and that Mehmed Aga and Dalgıc
Ahmed Cavus also learned mother-of-pearl inlay here, the
importance given to wood |
Inlays of natural and painted ivory, mother-of-pearl, ebony
and metal
wire used on a Kuran
stand made of wood.
Late 16th century |
|
|
workmanship
in Ottoman art is readily appreciated. In terms of style and
technique, the loveliest and most magnificent examples of
wood workmanship are seen in the 16th and 17th centuries. A
rich combination emerges with the addition of 'hatayi' and
other naturalistic floral motifs to the ongoing Seijuk
tradition of intricate vegetal decorations consisting of
rumipalmettes and curving branches. It is interesting that
the C;intamani and Chinese cloud motifs of Far Eastern
influence, which we are accustomed to seeing earlier in tile
and fabric patterns, are repeated here, this time in wood
workmanship. Again in this period, besides the 'kundekari'
technique, which is used on large surfaces, the technique of
wood inlay also begins to be used for smaller scale wooden
objects. In this technique, also known
as
'tarsi', pieces of mother-of-pearl, ivory, bone,
tortoiseshell, boxwood, mahogany, gold, silver, and rubies
or other precious stones, prepared in keeping with the
design, are set or glued into tiny indentations hollowed out
in a pattern traced on the wood with a fine pencil.
|
This lectern was
produced by the inlay and 'kafes' technique. Early 17th
century
|
EDIRNEKARI:
ELEGANT
AND COLORFUL
The
technique of lacquering
is
conspicuous in Ottoman wood workmanship of the 17th and 18th
centuries. This technique, numerous examples of which are
encountered in Edime especially, is for this reason also
known as 'Edimekari'. The application of this technique,
which, besides wood, was also employed on cardboard and
leather, is difficult and painstaking work. |
|
When all
the irregularities have been smoothed out of the material to
be used, a layer of varnish is first applied to prevent the
surface from absorbing the paints. After drying, the
decoration is applied in gold leaf or paint of various
colors. When the paints have dried, the surface is again
varnished; this procedure is repeated several times. The
Rococo style, which arose as a style of architectural
decoration in the palaces of France in the mid-19th century,
also exhibits its influence in Ottoman wood workmanship, as
in every branch of Ottoman art, as 'Turkish Rococo'. On
small-scale handicrafts, the classical Ottoman decorative
motifs give way to floral bouquets, represented
naturalistically in a vase, acanthus leaves, C- and
S-curving branches, ribbons and bows. |
|
Unable to
withstand the ravages of time, most objects made of wood
have failed to survive to our day. Nevertheless, you may
still see some of the finest examples of wood workmanship
from the 8th up to the end of the 19th century in the Museum
of Turkish and Islamic Art.
|
|
|
Wooden shutters from the
Anatolian Seljuk period,
Konya
early 14th century |
A drawer
in Istanbul work is
one of the most beautiful examples
of 18th century Edirnekari |
|
|
|
Source: Skylife 11/04 |
|
Gönül
Tekeli & Ali Konyalı |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
