This article was automatically translated from the original Turkish version.
In my view, one of the greatest shortcomings of the right wing is artistic investment. Compared to the left wing, we are at least fifteen steps behind. Why?
The Istanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts (İKSV) organizes a biennial, and all of Istanbul talks about it. On the right wing, a program is held, and the next day only a few lines of news appear in sympathetic newspapers. That is all. How can one not be saddened by this?
When I learned that the “If There Is Shadow, There Is Light: 3rd International Yeditepe Biennial” had taken place, I was surprised. It was already the third one… But if our President does not attend, I am certain most of the public will not pay attention to it either—except for old-time Istanbul residents and those who follow music and calligraphy in Fatih and Üsküdar. They already keep the pulse of the city.
I recall that at one point the Üsküdar Municipality tried to address this gap. For the first time, the public could listen free of charge to Evgeny Grinko and Mark Eliyahu. Those were days when Istanbul truly breathed. But now? Something is being done under the name of a Culture Festival, but it merely circles within the same narrow framework.
Moreover, the city’s connection to poetry, photography, and art is steadily weakening. Istanbul is no longer a city that inspires. Once open to poets, painters, and photographers, today it is surrounded by billboards and concrete blocks. As our architectural identity crumbles, the city loses its soul along with its art. This poses a serious decline for us Muslims, whose inspiration and strength derive from the spiritual essence of the city.
Let us admit it: The right wing has not produced any festival—Istanbul Jazz Festival, Filmekimi, Istanbul Biennial
There is also a tragicomic aspect: Because people are not going to the cinema, the General Directorate of Cinema has reduced ticket prices to 80 TL. We invite young people to the cinema with cheap tickets, yet we cannot offer them a workshop, a scholarship, or a stage.
When I reflect on all this, I ask myself: As a young Turk, why must I be confined to a culture and art policy driven solely by left-wing investment? Why can I not find within my own wing an artistic environment nourished by my own values? The right wing has capital for bridges, roads, and ships. But when it comes to young artists, there is nothing. The burden of this failure is not borne only by politicians, but also by right-leaning foundations and businesspeople. If no genuine vision is presented, our energy and dreams will remain subject solely to one-sided investments. And the youth of the city will reconstruct its ancient bond with art through a Western-centric perception, becoming alienated from its own oriental culture. That, however, is a subject for another essay.