30 artists from Turkey, Georgia,
Lebanon, China, Slovakia, Irak and Egypt and the TRNC
By Heidi Trautmann
In July 2013, I heard about
the 6th International Femin&Art Paintings Festival in Trabzon
and the participation of one of our Turkish Cypriot artists, Ipek Denizli
Karagöz, participating in it. I reported
in Cyprus Observer and on my website. You find the text under Heidi Trautmann,
Cyprus Art News 531.
“On that occasion”, I was now
told by Ipek, “I was persuaded by the President of Femin Art, Mrs Şükran Üst, to
organise a workshop in the TRNC myself; I was hesitating first because it is an
enormous task, but when Şükran promised to come herself to Cyprus and assist, I
said I would do it.”
Ipek Denizli Karagöz
organised this event for this year’s International Women’s Day, not only with members
of the Femin Art Association but also artists she had met on other
international workshops, and on 8 March 2014, twenty five women from seven
different countries arrived at Ercan Airport to participate in the first
International women’s meeting of this kind, and five local artists have joined
the group here. It was an enormous undertaking but she managed within two
months to arrange the event and make a success out of it.
“It is already common
practice in other countries, says Ipek, that women art groups meet, work
together and exchange their experiences. So I am very proud that we have
succeeded to have a first such event in my country. It was not an easy task to
get the support from official offices, but piece by piece I was able to get the
project standing and with it the financial plan organised; I am grateful to the
sponsors, the Cultural Department of the Ministry for Deputy Prime Minister,
Economy, Tourism, Culture and Sports, especially for the support by Bedia Kale;
the municipalities of Famagusta, Lapta and especially Kyrenia for their support
and advice, and not to forget the Public Library with its director Rükiye Kaymak.”
There was a Press Meeting at
the Grand Pasha Hotel in Kyrenia open to the public on 8 March which I missed,
but on Monday, 10 March, I had the opportunity to meet all the artists in person
and in front of their easels working hard to finish their paintings for the
exhibition on the following day. The workshop was held at the Public Library in
Kyrenia, on the first floor which I intimately know as we had our own group
exhibition here in 2011, and I was overwhelmed to see the many children
flocking in during the morning of that day, several school classes brought by
their teachers, which is an unusual experience at art exhibitions here - have I
not always criticised the lack of interest by art teachers on the occasion of
art exhibitions. Bravo, Ipek, I appreciate this very much. There were small
workshops held by the guest artists for the smaller and bigger school children
in the garden of the library, such as dyeing processes with plants and creating
felt images from wool.
I spent some hours among the
artists, seeing them work and talking to them. To honour them because of their
courage and determination I want to mention them here all by name. From
Georgia: Inna Abzandadze, Lisa Shvelidze. From Turkey: Şükran Üst, Hülya Yeşilçimen,
Handan Şahin, Emine Keskin Aydin, Suna Yilmaz Erdoğan, Gülay Bilge, Alev Sakinci,
Emel Ertürk, Gonca Yahan, Leyla Buhara, Şükran Ulucan, Meriç Yoldaş Hiçyilmaz,
Sevinç Serez. Bedia Yurtgezer Vural, Gülten Demirci, Aynur Akgün, Gülşen Akdoğan.
From Lebanon: Nada Itani. From Irak: Fatimah Adil Jumaah. From China:
Prof.Shuengit Chow; from Egypt: Shereen Elbarodi. From Slovakia Zuzana Krizalkovicova,
Katarina Balunova and from the TRNC: Bedia Kale, Bahar Çiralı, Ipek Denizli Karagöz,
Zühre Özkaraman and Behiçe Biran Saçildı.
The first day they had been
taken around on a bus tour to get an impression of culture and nature and they
now had a very short time to interpret it until the exhibition to open on
Tuesday, 11 March at 18.30 in Nicosia at the Atatürk Cultural Centre. I had
interesting talks with many of the artists and I saw very impressing works.
While I am writing this, the art
works of the art group will be hung up in the Atatürk Cultural Centre and they
will meet us tonight for a last time; they are invited by the Mayor of Kyrenia
for the final dinner and they will leave us tomorrow but their works will stay
with us in Cyprus. Ipek Denizli Karagöz, the organiser of the big event, will
keep them as basis for the small museum in Nicosia, she plans to open soon,
together with an art centre and meeting place.
Thank you, Ipek, for
oragnising this event and a thank you to the women for coming to Cyprus.