|
Female philanthropists figure prominently among Uçan and Çolak’s exhibit. We are introduced to Aziz Haydar Hanım, who sold her inheritance of diamonds in order to establish a pre-school for the future, 'diamonds of the nation,' and to Safiye Hanım, the first Turkish woman to become a doctor
As the veil was being lifted from public life within the nascent Turkish republic in 1928, another veil began to descend, unwittingly, over a legion of visionary heroines of the time. The shift from the Perso-Arabic Ottoman to the Turkish alphabet, in addition to bringing many benefits to the Westernizing nation, also ultimately would play a role in shrouding a vital sphere of the country's past.
Nearly eight decades later, we are being given the chance to peer behind that veil thanks to Lale Uçan, 34, and Güldane Çolak, 33, Ottoman historian and archivist, respectively. Revealed underneath are character portraits of women who, through their leadership and contributions in the arts, media, politics, family life, education, commerce, public service, medicine, philanthropy – and, indeed, society at large, will inspire you no less than as if they were alive today. They are strong, courageous and tenacious. Bold, enterprising and politically savvy. Compassionate and dedicated.
And often, they fly in the face of today's all too common notions of the women of the era. In the case of Belkıs Şevket, quite literally, where she rallied the support of fellow members of the Ottoman Organization for the Defense of Women's Rights. Şevket overcame initial objections on the part of authorities to become the first Turkish woman to fly in an airplane in 1913.
In a flight lasting 15 minutes, Şevket took to the skies in “The Ottoman,†a Deperdussin flown by Fethi Bey of Tayyare Flight School. As shrewd as she was dauntless, Şevket strewed cards from the craft inviting the crowd below to make donations to the organization. The event garnered media attention both at home and abroad, succeeding in its mission to demonstrate that interest in technological progress was not exclusive to men.
Indeed, stop for a moment to visualize a technological entrepreneur of the 1920s. Who do you see? Chances are, you've imagined a stereotype: a Westerner -- and almost certainly a man.
Had you had the benefit of Uçan and Çolak's photography exhibit, Women Who Made Their Mark in Turkish History, the image before your eyes would likely have been that of Muzaffer Hanım. Mastering the period's state-of-the-art photographic technology, Muzaffer Hanım went on to become the first itinerant portrait photographer, capturing the natural beauty and warmth of the settings in which she worked in applying her unique sense of visual artistry.
Gutsy and determined in taking on the realization of an exhibit of the women they've discovered, Uçan and Çolak's paths first crossed not while attending their shared alma mater, Istanbul University, but three years ago at the Prime Ministerial Ottoman Archives in Sultanahment. Archive studies specialist Çolak and Ottoman historian Uçan had been conducting research for their clients, which ranged from historical writers to architectural and scholarly organizations. Uçan had also been finishing up her master's in her field from Bosphorus University.
“We essentially stumbled into these women,†the two note, having quickly discerned the ageless eloquence of each woman's life story -- thanks, in part, to their proficiency in Ottoman.
Teaming up officially two years later, they compiled the compelling tapestry of 53 magazine photographs and illustrations dating from between 1900-1928, which make up the content of their proposed exhibit, for which they are currently seeking a sponsor. Publication of an album-style book is also under consideration, while a documentary is a third alternative they would like to explore.
“Today's all too common notion that Ottoman women just sat at home is simply wrong,†Çolak says, adding that “they didn't watch TV soaps about made-up heroes and heroines. They themselves were the heroines.â€
Emphasizing that the exhibit is intended as a cultural celebration of Turkey's past, Uçan explains, “We wanted to present a visceral reminder to our audience that history isn't just a series of dry dates and facts, a mere timeline of wars lost and won.â€
The veil of history that Uçan and Çolak are pulling back with their proposed exhibit has been woven not only by time and a scriptural shift, but also by the men who traditionally have tailored history's narrative.
In the hands of Behire Hakkı, tailoring itself became a means of women's political and economic self-assertion, with a selfless touch. Recognizing that a nation's economic development was a function of the strength of the female labor force, Ms. Hakkı, a member of the Paris Tailoring Academy, established the Mudafaa-i Milliye Cemiyeti (Organization for National Defense) Tailoring School for Women in 1913.
In addition to providing destitute women with a means of earning a living, the school aimed to provide a domestic source of military tailoring services that would be more affordable than those of external sources on which Turks depended at the time.
By 1923, Hakkı's school had produced a total of 1,380 graduates, each of whom went on to become gainfully employed. High officials of the state, taking note of the graduation ceremonies and Hakkı's exhibits, conferred upon Hakkı the prestigious Medal of Industry and the Ministry of Education awards.
Female philanthropists figure prominently among Uçan and Çolak's exhibit. We are introduced to Aziz Haydar Hanım, who sold her inheritance of diamonds in order to establish a pre-school for the future, “diamonds of the nation,†and to Safiye Hanım, the first Turkish woman to become a doctor.
Immediately upon returning from her medical education in Germany in 1922, Safiye Hanım began working for charity organizations while maintaining her private practice. She made her mark by educating mothers about childcare and the importance of “preventive healthcare†as well as by procuring pasteurized milk for the mothers' infants. Subsequently contracting cancer, she died at the age of 53.
No less inspirational are the women of all ages who, in an undertaking of patriotic compassion, volunteered their time and efforts to the Gülhane Military Hospital during Turkey's War of Liberation. Rolls of gauze, to be used as make-shift wound treatments, were pinned to the breast pockets of soldiers' uniforms, serving perhaps more importantly as a reminder of the love and moral support of the women at home awaiting the troops' return.
Among the challenges Uçan and Çolak have encountered in seeking a sponsor have been the fact that they are -- as yet, at least -- unknown and the notion that supporting the exhibit would give the sponsor an image of “backwardness.†But tenacious and savvy like the subjects of their exhibit, the two are soldiering on, building on the experience and connections they've gained along the way.
They are also encouraged by the increasing interest and attention Ottoman history has been receiving in recent years, particularly as evidenced by the hot item that Ottoman documents have become at the Prime Ministerial Archives.
Indeed, newspapers and magazines were increasingly used among women as a means of shaping public opinion in the latter years of the Ottoman Empire. For Uçan and Çolak, an especially resonant case in point:
When Bedra Osman Hanım and her friends responded to ads put out in 1913 by the French-run Istanbul Telephone Company inviting women to apply for clerkships, they were rejected on the grounds that they lacked knowledge of French and Greek. In turn, the women initiated a media campaign against the company. Bedra Hanım asserted that they had in fact been discriminated against because they were Muslim women, and that their lack of French and Greek had been a false excuse for not hiring them. Following a series of protest letters and op-ed pieces printed in the intellectual women's magazine, Women's World, published by the Organization for the Defense of Ottoman Women's Rights, the seven Muslim women were hired by the company.
AYŞE ŞAHİN
ISTANBUL - Turkish Daily News
|
