The heyday of gilding in the Ottoman Empire

Gold. Why has mankind over the millennia decided to give such importance to a metal? Not just as something of commercial or aesthetic value? Somehow everybody has been convinced of gold’s value. Even today it is a commodity that is traded worldwide with its price bumping around in relation to the world’s economy, foreign exchange rates, crises, etc.

The decorative aspect goes back as far as mankind’s records and that usually starts with the Egyptians. Aside from jewelry, gold was used as decorations on buildings, ceilings, column capitals and in many other ways probably that have survived until today. The ancient Greeks were also enamored of ivory and inlaid gold and gilding. Ivory white marble and gold decoration was used on their statues of the gods and goddesses. The Romans continued the practice and on into the Middle Ages.

Among the Muslims however, gold was used as money and investment while the Prophet Mohammed is supposed to have forbidden men to wear gold ornaments such as rings and necklaces. Women could though.

In general portraying human figures was also forbidden in Islam although later humans could be portrayed if they were two dimensional. So Muslims turned to calligraphy using the Arabic alphabet as decoration. Not only were forms of the alphabet used on mosques but they were also used in books or calligraphic pages for instance. It took years to become an expert in even just one type of way of writing. There weren’t any ball point pens around so a calligrapher learned to fashion and sharpen the reeds that were used as pens. He also had to know how to make his own ink and how to treat the paper on which he would write. And since calligraphy was an art form, the artist had many other considerations to take into account.

An extension of the calligraphic art was gilding or using gold as decoration in the manuscripts produced especially with the Qur’an, the sultan’s tuğra or official signature, the first page of a book and miniatures. In the Ottoman Empire the production of beautifully decorated manuscripts reached its height in the period from the time of Fatih Sultan Mehmed through the reign of Kanuni Sultan Süleyman, approximately one hundred years between the mid-15th century and mid-16th century.

Techniques and materials
Gilding is the applying of a thin layer of gold to a surface. The art of gilding requires a long learning process and of course the more gold leaf or gold ink that went into a product, the more expensive it became.

The process started with preparing the substance on which it would be applied such as polishing paper so that it would be equal in quality to the gold that would be applied. Other substances used could be wood, metals like copper, stone and the like.

Preparing the gold leaf tough and time-consuming work
In addition to preparing paper, the artisan would have to prepare the gold leaf or gold ink and this was a very hard and time-consuming business. This could be done by crushing gold leaf and fortunately for the artist, there were people who did this for a living. It has been estimated that it took 10,000 blows and more to smash the gold leaf into the tiny particles that could be made into ink.

Since gold was used for the most delicate parts of decoration, it was impossible to use a regular pen. Instead the color would be applied using a fine point of a single feather or wire.

The calligraphic artisans used to draw patterns first before they transferred them to manuscript paper, wood or other material. That way they could perfect the form before producing the expensive, final masterpiece. The same approach was used for the beautiful ceramic tiles and vases. The patterns would be drawn on the surface that was being decorated using something like a lead pencil and these lines would then be gone over usually with black paint. Then the gold (or for that matter, any other color) would be applied to the spaces between the black lines.

Manuscripts for example would have been ordered by wealthy and educated patrons, the sultans and paşas for instance. The more important the patron, the better the work would be; the greater fame the gilder would achieve followed by orders from other possible patrons, the greater the reward.

Glory years of the art
The illustrious years extended from Fatih Sultan Mehmed to Sultan Süleyman and then in tandem with the slow decline of the Ottoman Empire, the quality of education and training, standards and materials underwent a similar deterioration.

With the end of the Ottoman Empire and beginning of the Turkish Republic, the use of the Arabic alphabet was abandoned. It wasn’t until the 1980s that interest in things Ottoman revived. It was the career choice mostly for those who got the lowest passing scores on their university entrance exams. Fortunately some people chose to carry on the light.

A look at Tezhip in the modern age
Çırağan Palace Kempinski Art Gallery is hosting an unusual exhibition "In the Presence of Love" that opened this week and will continue 24/7 until March 24. The works on display are the culmination of ten years of joint work by two artists, Nilufer Kurfeyz and Selim Saglam, who first began to work together in 1990. Classic forms as well as interpretations that invite you to go on a journey of discovery. The works offer the viewer a mixed, even confused road to follow.

Nilüfer Kurfeyz in her early fifties has been studying the decorative arts and classical Ottoman style since high school. She studied under Ord. Prof. Suheyl Unver and in 1985 Kurfeyz graduated from Istanbul University’s Faculty of Letters in Classical Greek and Roman Archaeology.

After graduation Kurfeyz focused on gilding and how this technique could be applied to different materials such as paper, leather and wood. As a result she developed her own style and colors and applied them to her original, hand-crafted pieces.

Kurfeyz believes that "true art and craftsmanship in the gilding art is hidden behind the harmony of the details, and this refinement composes the very soul of gilding. Her traditional, classical and modern designs all reflect this deeply-held belief."

All of Kurfeyz’s work, which has been created over a period of 33 years, is now in personal collections and museums all over the world. Examples of her artistry have been published in books and other publication, furthering her goal of establishing an appreciative audience for gilding. Kurfeyz believes that art and the creative facilities develop through the sharing and passing down of knowledge and experience from teacher to student. She also believes gilding can be a collective art. Since 1990 she has been creating collective works with her partner Selim Saglam, who once took lessons from her. In the gilding world, collective gilding design is an extraordinary approach, but together, these two artists create unique double autographed gilded pieces.

Çırağan Palace Kempinski Art Gallery Exhibition is in the ground floor of the palace itself. Entrance from the palace parking place.