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A sample of calligraphy and gilding |
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The Turkish art of calligraphy kept its vitality in the 19th century and in the beginning of the 20th century, but upon the adoption of the Latin script which replaced the Arabic one in 1928, it ceased to be a widespread art and became merely a traditional art taught in specific institutions. |
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The last grandmaster of Turkish calligraphy was Hattat Hamid Aytaç. Aytaç, who was born in Diyarbakır in 1891, was among the pioneers to introduce zincography and steel gravure techniques, in other words, embossed and luxury printing techniques as well as engraving pictures or scripts on steel sheets. |
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| Thousands of examples of his exquisite calligraphy exist in the unmatched scripts in Şişli Mosque, one of the newest mosques in İstanbul, and also in many houses, lounges, and workplaces in Egypt and Iraq as well as other places in the world. Aytaç, who spent a long and fruitful life, trained a great number of students coming from the entire Islamic world, and even from Japan. |
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Architecture and Its Culture |
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| Early Turkish architecture that took shape during the first five years of the Republic was the expression of a selective style inspired by the classical period of Ottoman architecture in particular and it included first-generation architects graduated from the schools of architecture established during the late Ottoman period. However, during the construction of public buildings, one of the most urgent requirements of the day, all over the country and especially in Ankara between 1928 until the end of World War II, a contemporary and international architectural style developed as a result of the contributions from architects who studied in Berlin and Vienna. |
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| The architects who designed the public buildings during the early Republic Era were influenced by the First National Architectural Movement pioneered by architects Kemalettin Bey and Vedat Tek. Their style was inspired by aesthetic aspects of Seljuk and Ottoman architecture and featured ornamental elements such as carved stones, decorated tiles and façades. The Second Turkish Grand National Assembly, the Ankara Palace and the headquarters of both the Agricultural and Ottoman banks in the vicinity of the Ulus Square as well as the Turkish Home and the Museum of Ethnography built on Namazgah Hill in Ankara are the best architectural examples of this era. |
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| During the 1930s, a large number of public buildings designed by foreign architects including Egli, Holzmeister |
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2nd TGNA (Turkish Grand National Assembly) Building |
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