Focus on Güzel İstanbul and discuss the Commission.
In 1972, the Istanbul governor's office formed a Board for the Celebration of the 50th Anniversary of the Republic, which would occur the following year. A joint initiative of the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality, the Istanbul Fine Arts Academy and the State College of Fine and Applied Arts formed the board's Fine Arts Committee, which included Şadi Çalık, Mustafa Aslıer and Hüseyin Gezer. The committee commissioned 50 sculptures to celebrate the anniversary; they would be sculpted by 50 artists and placed in several public spaces in Istanbul, including parks and squares.Due to insufficient funding, the number of sculptures was reduced to 20 and the Board introduced more stringent qualifications to eliminate 30 artists; the sculptor had to be living in Istanbul and either have received a state award or have had established their personality in the arts sphere. In addition to Duyar, selected artists included Kuzgun Acar, Tamer Başoğlu, Zerrin Bölükbaşı, Ali Teoman Germaner, Yavuz Görey, Zühtü Müritoğlu, Füsun Onur, Kamil Sonad, Nusret Suman and Seyhun Topuz.The committee did not provide stylistic or thematic guidelines, opting for diversity and suggesting each artist submit a work in their idiosyncratic style to represent the diversity of contemporaneous Turkish sculpture. The sculptors were told the placement of their proposed sculpture would be not be predetermined; but would be installed in a park, a square, or on a roadside. The design proposals were to be submitted to the State Art and Sculpture Museum on 20 August 1973.Gürdal Duyar submitted the sketches for his proposal; a nude which he named Güzel Istanbul ("Beautiful Istanbul"). His proposal was approved during a meeting of the board that was attended by provincial and municipal representatives. The board selected his proposal to be placed in Karaköy Square. The design and the nudity were not considered an issue at any point in the process.The sculpture has alternatively been called Ah Güzel İstanbul ("Oh Beautiful Istanbul)".
Yavuz Görey nude 50 sculptures Füsun Onur Şadi Çalık State Art and Sculpture Museum Hüseyin Gezer Mustafa Aslıer Zerrin Bölükbaşı state award Kamil Sonad provincial Karaköy Square Istanbul Ali Teoman Germaner Tamer Başoğlu Zühtü Müritoğlu initiative Seyhun Topuz Gürdal Duyar Kuzgun Acar Nusret Suman Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality Istanbul Fine Arts Academy State College of Fine and Applied Arts