"Istanbul and Beyond" Art Exhibit Featuring Ziya Gurel's Artwork

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Ziya Gurel

Istanbul Dream, Oil on Canvas, 53" x 37"

City of Annapolis Arts in Public Places Commission features Ziya Gurel, a well-known Turkish artist.

The solo exhibition titled, “Istanbul and Beyond / An Eastern Tale” illustrates a unique tale of East and West, moving between fiction and reality. This retrospective exhibition also celebrates Ziya Gurel’s 46th year in art as an internationally acclaimed artist. The show runs from April 8th through May 31st. The artist reception will be held Monday, April 29th from 5:30pm to 7pm.

Ziya Gurel, a well-known artist in Turkey and the Middle East, Gurel has exhibited his work in 33 individual exhibitions and participated in several group exhibitions in Turkey, Pakistan and Lebanon. In March 2018 Gurel had his first exhibit in the United States at the Washington D.C. Chevy Chase Design Center. His art is on display at the State Museum of Painting and Sculpture in Izmir, Turkey. Many of Gurel’s works are in various Turkish and foreign art collections.

Throughout his 45-year career, Gurel has experimented with various materials and techniques, including engraving, oil on canvas, collage, watercolor, and spray paint. Among these techniques his favorite has always been oil on canvas.

Gurel’s childhood interest in art matured into a love of painting by his early twenties. His lifelong exposure to the Aegean landscape and his experience in the bohemian neighborhoods of Istanbul greatly influenced his art and early career.

Gurel believes that human memory always tries to locate its owner by going through the pages of real life experiences. The objective is to be able to get close to the reality as much as possible, in short; to take refuge in something that provides meaning. Even though the cityscapes and diverse geographies portrayed in his paintings tell a story to the audience, consciousness always looks for ways to escape, traveling between fiction and reality. Maybe this is the purest, most candid way of expressing human nature.

Gurel’s art exhibition is dedicated to Wendi Winters' loving memory, along with all those who lost their lives at the horrific Capital Gazette shooting on June 28th, 2018. Wendi Winters confirmed just a few minutes prior to the attack that she had added Gurel's second art exhibit in the US in Baywoods of Annapolis to the art listings page of the paper, and she was very excited about the exhibit which included many cityscapes of Istanbul --her favorite city. She said that she lived the best days of her life in Istanbul as a little girl and could speak a little Turkish. Her eternal resting place is now in Istanbul; in a beautiful park where she used to spend her happy childhood days.

For more information about Ziya Gurel and to see images of his collection, please visit www.ziyagurel.portfoliobox.net