First Lecture

The first lecture, called "A Look at the Art of Calligraphy from a Design Perspective", was done by Prof. Dr. Cetin Sarikartal, the Head of Communication Design Department. He started out talking about the mediation of ornaments as a source for different kinds of inspiration. It was important that we understood the difference between flimsy associations and the more confident association that comes from trying out different kinds of perspectives and seeing how they relate to each other. I'll try to outline the most important elements of his lecture below.

The first line of command in the Quran is "write & resight". And there is a response by the reader after viewing Ottoman Calligraphy. The writing itsself is a response to two things: the meaning of the word; the environment where the writing is performed. The place of writing, in Ottoman Calligraphy, is most important. In mosques the entire building is centered around the Calligraphic ornamentation. The rest of the art and decoration is all according and in accordance with the writing. It's a user experience in an architectural environment designed to purvey meaning in a multitude of layers.

It's important to understand that a 'figure-background' relation is completely different from the the interplay that is suggested by the calligraphy as an interaction between environment and writing. In figure-background relations the background is completely neutral, used to support the figure. But in Ottoman Calligraphy the writings are completely intertwined with the environment. The meaning of the word for Ottoman Calligraphy, or Ghüt, is 'line'. The etymology of the word is related to cartography, where pieces of land are divided by lines and this is reflected in the Ghüt. In a mosque an empty wall would be reflective of a wild land, an uncultivated jungle. A land cultivated by the people is reflected in a Ghut on a wall. It's adding meaning to an environment from within, relating meaning from the artist through the style in accordance with the environment.

The compositions reveal a deep sense of powerful order reflected from the Islamic culture. But the lines also reflecht the autonomity and freedom of the artist. The relation between these two suggest a strong sense of interaction.

There is a tension between intellectual aspects of Ottoman Calligraphy, used for control and distinction, and a populist aspect which is urban, religious and secular.