Masterpieces of the "1914 Generation" at the İş Bank Painting and Sculpture Museum...
The new exhibition at the Türkiye İş Bank Painting and Sculpture Museum, titled "The 1914 Generation: Painters We Know," examines key figures of Turkish painting alongside their mentors, contemporaries, and students.
The Türkiye İş Bank Painting and Sculpture Museum’s new temporary exhibition, "The 1914 Generation: Painters We Know," opens to visitors on Saturday, September 26. Curated by Prof. Dr. Gül İrepoğlu, the exhibition brings together approximately 200 works from the Türkiye İş Bank and Arkas collections.
Focusing on artists who received art training in Istanbul in the early 20th century, traveled to Paris for further painting studies, and returned to Turkey upon the outbreak of World War I in 1914, the exhibition explores the place of the "1914 Generation" in Turkish painting through the lens of relationships between different generations.
In addition to works by İbrahim Çallı, Feyhaman Duran, Namık İsmail, Sami Yetik, Ali Sami Boyar, Hüseyin Avni Lifij, Mehmed Ruhi Arel, Nazmi Ziya Güran, and Hikmet Onat, the exhibition features works that illustrate the artists' influence on their mentors, contemporaries, and subsequent generations.
A generation spanning from Paris to Istanbul
During their time studying in Paris, artists of the 1914 Generation were influenced by Impressionism as well as the academic artistic conventions of the era. Upon returning to Turkey, the artists participated in exhibitions in Istanbul and Ankara, incorporated various regions of Anatolia into their works, and contributed to the visibility of art in society through their writings.
The exhibition’s curator, Prof. Dr. Gül İrepoğlu, assesses the generation's impact on Turkish art through a shared spirit forged by struggle and hard work.
According to İrepoğlu, artists of the "1914 Generation" developed their own unique styles in Paris under the influence of Impressionism. Their participation in exhibitions, their depiction of Anatolia in their paintings, and their writings on art played a pivotal role in fostering interest in the visual arts and developing an appreciation for art in Turkey. The generation also played an influential role in the training of subsequent artists.
An artistic legacy spanning from mentors to students
The exhibition examines the 1914 Generation not only through the works of its representatives but also in the context of the artists who mentored them and those they influenced.
The first section of the exhibition features works by the mentors of the 1914 Generation. This is followed by a display of works by the generation's representatives, organized under various themes. The section titled "Those Who Shared the Era" highlights painters who were active during the same period, while the section "A Garden of a Thousand Shoots" presents works by the artists' students to visitors. In addition to Fernand Cormon’s work titled "The Wait" (*Bekleyiş*), the exhibition features İbrahim Çallı’s "Woman Smelling a Rose" (*Gül Koklayan Kadın*), Feyhaman Duran’s "Girl in Blue Shalwar" (*Mavi Şalvarlı Kız*), Namık İsmail’s "Threshing" (*Harman*), and Hikmet Onat’s "Landscape-Ortaköy" (*Peyzaj-Ortaköy*)—the very first piece acquired for the Türkiye İş Bankası Art Collection.
Other highlights of the exhibition include Nazmi Ziya Güran’s nature landscapes shaped by light, Avni Lifij’s mysterious compositions, works by Ali Sami Boyar, and depictions of the homeland by Sami Yetik and Ruhi Arel.
A book accompanying the exhibition has been prepared by Prof. Dr. Gül İrepoğlu. The publication features works selected from the Türkiye İş Bankası and Arkas collections, alongside period photographs. The artists' journeys to Paris are recounted through short stories structured around dialogues.
Organized through the collaboration of İş Sanat and Arkas Sanat, the exhibition "The 1914 Generation: Painters We Know" (*1914 Kuşağı: Tanıdığımız Ressamlar*) is on view until July 12, 2027, across the second and third floors of the Türkiye İş Bankası Painting and Sculpture Museum in Beyoğlu. The museum is open Tuesday through Friday from 10:00 to 19:00, and on Saturdays and Sundays from 12:00 to 19:00.
Source: https://tr.euronews.com/2026/09/22/1914-kusaginin-basyapitlari-is-bankasi-resim-heykel-muzesinde