Two museums exchange collections in Istanbul, İzmir

ISTANBUL

An exhibition titled “Nature, Gardens, Fantasies,” which shows the relationship between nature and humans through the works compiled from the Arkas Collection is on display at Istanbul’s Elgiz Museum.

A selection from the Elgiz Collection presenting the theme of “Myths and Dreams” will also be displayed at the Arkas Art Center in İzmir as of March 26 within the scope of a collaboration between the two art centers.

With this collaboration, the Arkas Art Center and the Elgiz Museum will host the exhibitions of two private collections prepared with the themes that support each other and remind us of the current pandemic agenda in the museums of two major cities.

By bringing together works created at a time when nature was not damaged by humans, “Nature, Gardens, Fantasies,” which opened on March 4, aims to remind that human is a part of nature and can survive only with it.

It brings a focus on the relationship between art, nature, gardens and humans through the works. Selected from among different branches of art, including painting, sculpture, decorative arts and textile art, the works bring together the unique perspectives of major local and international artists. Spanning the 16th and the 20th centuries, these pastoral works demonstrate the changes that took place in artistic production over time.
Under the direction of Gospel Unustası and curated by Jean Luc Maeso, the exhibition features works by important figures from the European art of painting, including Alfred Sisley, Maurice de Vlaminck, Maurice Denis, John William Godward, John Atkinson Grimshaw and Alfred de Breanski, alongside landscape-themed works from important Turkish artists, such as Hoca Ali Rıza, İsmail Hakkı, Nazmi Ziya Güran and Sami Yetik. In addition to the paintings, the selection includes works from major 19th-century sculptors such as Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux and Albert-Ernest Carrier-Belleuse.

The exhibition sheds light on various periods and areas of production, featuring Flemish tapestry from the 16th century, as well as Feshane and Kumkapı carpets that date back to the 19th century, and reflect the tradition of Ottoman palace carpets. Another group of works exhibited consists of glass objects.

The theme of the garden is embodied in the glassworks crafted in the workshops of Emile Gallé and Daum Nancy, who are among the most important representatives of the Art Nouveau period. With a look into the exhibition as a whole, paintings by Alfred Sisley, John William Godward, Maurice de Vlaminck and Peder Mork Monsted, as well as the Emile Gallé furniture, are among the works that are being exhibited for the first time.

At a press conference, Arkas Holding CEO Lucien Arkas said the “Nature, Gardens, Fantasies” exhibition was the fourth one they opened in Istanbul, adding that she attaches great importance to the cooperation between collectors and museums, that both institutions get to know each other by establishing close relationships and that it makes it possible for the collections to reach more people.

“Nature has been one of the greatest sources of inspiration for art throughout history. Artists’ work on nature is as old as art itself. I have a great passion for nature and gardens. This interest is also reflected in the works we bought for the Arkas Collection, and a large part of the collection consists of works related to nature. Making connections between different parts of the Arkas Collection, this exhibition creates a general portrait of the collection with the works in it. We aim to explain the change that artistic production went through at a period from the Renaissance to the 20th century and to draw attention to the indispensable relationship between nature and human,” she said.