ImagÂine a grand tour of EuroÂpean museÂums, and a fair few desÂtiÂnaÂtions come right to mind: the RijksmuÂseÂum, the PraÂdo, the Uffizi Gallery, the LouÂvre. These instiÂtuÂtions alone could take years to expeÂriÂence fulÂly, but it would be an incomÂplete jourÂney that didÂn’t venÂture farÂther east — much farÂther east, in the view of Great Art Explained creÂator James Payne. In his latÂest Great Art Cities video, he makes the case for IstanÂbul, adducÂing such both artisÂtiÂcalÂly and hisÂtorÂiÂcalÂly rich sites as the Ä°stÂanbÂul ArchaeÂoÂlogÂiÂcal MuseÂum, the BasilÂiÂca CisÂtern, the Zeyrek Çinili Hamam, IstanÂbul ModÂern, and of course — as preÂviÂousÂly feaÂtured here on Open CulÂture — the unigÂnorÂable Hagia Sophia.
Payne introÂduces IstanÂbul as havÂing been “the capÂiÂtal of three great empires, Roman, ByzanÂtine, and Ottoman.” In the conÂtiÂnent-stradÂdling metropÂoÂlis as it is today, “both ancient and modÂern art blend eleÂments from Europe, Asia, and the MidÂdle East, reflectÂing its geoÂgraphÂiÂcal and hisÂtorÂiÂcal posiÂtionÂing as a bridge between the East and the West.”
The works on disÂplay in the city conÂstiÂtute “a visuÂal embodÂiÂment of its comÂplex hisÂtoÂry,” from the HelÂlenisÂtic to the Roman to the IslamÂic to the styles and media of the twenÂtiÂeth and twenÂty-first cenÂturies, with all of which “modÂern-day Turkey is now creÂatÂing its own artisÂtic legaÂcy.”
That legaÂcy is also deeply rootÂed in the past. VisÂit the ArchaeÂoÂlogÂiÂcal MuseÂum and you can see the AlexanÂder SarÂcophÂaÂgus from the fourth cenÂtuÂry BC, whose astonÂishÂingÂly detailed carvÂings include “the only existÂing depicÂtion of AlexanÂder the Great creÂatÂed durÂing his lifeÂtime.” The underÂground BasilÂiÂca CisÂtern, built in the sixth cenÂtuÂry, counts as much as a large-scale work of ByzanÂtine art as it does a large-scale work of ByzanÂtine engiÂneerÂing. From there, it’s a short tram ride on the GalaÂta Bridge across the GoldÂen Horn to the brand-new, RenÂzo Piano-designed IstanÂbul ModÂern, which has paintÂings by Cihat Burak, FahrelÂnisÂsa Zeid, Bedri Baykam. You may not know those names now, but if you view their work in the unique culÂturÂal conÂtext of IstanÂbul — in which so many eras and civÂiÂlizaÂtions are manÂiÂfest — you’ll nevÂer forÂget them.
RelatÂed conÂtent:
Watch DigÂiÂtal Dancers ElecÂtriÂfy the Streets of IstanÂbul
Great Art Cities: VisÂit the FasÂciÂnatÂing, LessÂer-Known MuseÂums of LonÂdon & Paris
Based in Seoul, ColÂin Marshall writes and broadÂcasts on cities, lanÂguage, and culÂture. His projects include the SubÂstack newsletÂter Books on Cities, the book The StateÂless City: a Walk through 21st-CenÂtuÂry Los AngeÂles and the video series The City in CinÂeÂma. FolÂlow him on TwitÂter at @colinmarshall or on FaceÂbook.
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