Art invades shop windows in resort
Güncelleme Tarihi:
by Chris Drum Berkaya
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Haziran 18, 2009 00:00
BODRUM -Empty shop windows are one of the constant reminders of the fickle fortunes suffered by those who start a business in a resort town. The idea of using them as display cases for artists is taken up by some of the volunteers assisting the financially troubled Turgutreis Municipality.
Visitors and residents alike were surprised to see the new Turgutreis mayor flanked by cameramen, local assembly members and other people marching through the town’s central shopping area Monday.
Their purpose became clear when they stopped at the red ribbon draped across the front of an empty shop that had been transformed into an art gallery. Once the ribbon was cut, the group went onto inspect more of the several empty shops that had works of art installed as exhibits. With the parade, the Art in Windows Project in Turgutreis Municipality has been formally launched.
Empty shop windows are one of the constant reminders of the fickle fortunes suffered by those who start a business in a resort town, and in the midst of an economic downturn the numbers of neglected and empty shops in the Turgutreis center stood out like eyesores in the early weeks of May, as the town prepared for the summer. Used as parking spots for bikes and other paraphernalia of a working street, they are ignored or accepted by most. However the idea of using them as display cases for artists was taken up by some of the volunteers now assisting the financially troubled town.
Tough work
Walking along the route between shops the day before the launch, the artist volunteer Deborah Semel Demirtaş, a Turgutreis resident, had shop keys in hand, and posters to put in the shop fronts noting the name of the artist whose work was displayed. Stopping at a small shop window between a bar and a gift shop, the papier mach installation by Gümüşlük artist Ute Ciner and the painting by Musa Köksal, a Fine Arts Faculty member at Muğla University, brightened up the view.
The bar owner obligingly moved his friends moped, and chatted about the project, and then the gift shop owner Zeki made a point of saying how much he approved of the project, saying he was pleased to see improvements in the look of the town center.
Demirtaş, assisted by local artists İnci and Alp, had been in contact with many local artists asking for their support, and Demirtaş said the participating artists had been "nothing but generous in their interest (in the project)." Their art is on display for the sake of decorating the spaces, and not intended for sale. A half window shows the paintings of an entire school class.
Likewise she said she had been taken aback by many of the shopkeepers in the precinct who simply had accepted it as a good thing for Turgutreis and supported it whole-heartedly. The task of locating and contacting empty shop owners had been shouldered by Funda Akçalı, a member of the municipal council who had mobilized the Zabıta’s knowledge of the area.
Not only empty shops
The municipality department had taken on the clean up too, in some cases scraping off posters and stickers. Not all of the display shops are empty; a small tailor’s shop proudly displays a beautiful and vibrant little textile work, an enormous oil painting occupies the window at the back of a bar, a neat little fish painting catches the eye at a small fishmonger.
Some prime position shops were simply unavailable, she regrets, and at the same time she points out that it will take interested people on a hunt down the small streets to find some of the shops, "but it is a beginning" she grins. "We hope to add more work to more spaces as people now see how the project is shaping up."
She is most proud of the fine works in the enormous new shop space opposite the main Turgutreis minibus park, where most visitors start their walk through town. The shop was built for furniture store requirements, but remains empty. "What happens if it or other shops are rented out," she says for the owner’s sake, it would be good, and she would have to find another space!
The Art Windows project runs from Monday through Sept. 15. Start at the window opposite the dolmuş terminal and walk into the central pedestrian district and discover more of the sculpture, papier mach installation, acrylic and oil on canvas works on display.
Their purpose became clear when they stopped at the red ribbon draped across the front of an empty shop that had been transformed into an art gallery. Once the ribbon was cut, the group went onto inspect more of the several empty shops that had works of art installed as exhibits. With the parade, the Art in Windows Project in Turgutreis Municipality has been formally launched.
Empty shop windows are one of the constant reminders of the fickle fortunes suffered by those who start a business in a resort town, and in the midst of an economic downturn the numbers of neglected and empty shops in the Turgutreis center stood out like eyesores in the early weeks of May, as the town prepared for the summer. Used as parking spots for bikes and other paraphernalia of a working street, they are ignored or accepted by most. However the idea of using them as display cases for artists was taken up by some of the volunteers now assisting the financially troubled town.
Tough work
Walking along the route between shops the day before the launch, the artist volunteer Deborah Semel Demirtaş, a Turgutreis resident, had shop keys in hand, and posters to put in the shop fronts noting the name of the artist whose work was displayed. Stopping at a small shop window between a bar and a gift shop, the papier mach installation by Gümüşlük artist Ute Ciner and the painting by Musa Köksal, a Fine Arts Faculty member at Muğla University, brightened up the view.
The bar owner obligingly moved his friends moped, and chatted about the project, and then the gift shop owner Zeki made a point of saying how much he approved of the project, saying he was pleased to see improvements in the look of the town center.
Demirtaş, assisted by local artists İnci and Alp, had been in contact with many local artists asking for their support, and Demirtaş said the participating artists had been "nothing but generous in their interest (in the project)." Their art is on display for the sake of decorating the spaces, and not intended for sale. A half window shows the paintings of an entire school class.
Likewise she said she had been taken aback by many of the shopkeepers in the precinct who simply had accepted it as a good thing for Turgutreis and supported it whole-heartedly. The task of locating and contacting empty shop owners had been shouldered by Funda Akçalı, a member of the municipal council who had mobilized the Zabıta’s knowledge of the area.
Not only empty shops
The municipality department had taken on the clean up too, in some cases scraping off posters and stickers. Not all of the display shops are empty; a small tailor’s shop proudly displays a beautiful and vibrant little textile work, an enormous oil painting occupies the window at the back of a bar, a neat little fish painting catches the eye at a small fishmonger.
Some prime position shops were simply unavailable, she regrets, and at the same time she points out that it will take interested people on a hunt down the small streets to find some of the shops, "but it is a beginning" she grins. "We hope to add more work to more spaces as people now see how the project is shaping up."
She is most proud of the fine works in the enormous new shop space opposite the main Turgutreis minibus park, where most visitors start their walk through town. The shop was built for furniture store requirements, but remains empty. "What happens if it or other shops are rented out," she says for the owner’s sake, it would be good, and she would have to find another space!
The Art Windows project runs from Monday through Sept. 15. Start at the window opposite the dolmuş terminal and walk into the central pedestrian district and discover more of the sculpture, papier mach installation, acrylic and oil on canvas works on display.