Intersectıng Worlds İng

Wars, The İncrease Of Trade As A Means For Mutual Prosperity, And Conflicts Of Status Were The Most Significant Factors Behind The İntense Traffic Of Diplomacy. Sprawled Across A Vast Geography, The Ottoman Empire Welcomed More Ambassadors Than İt Sent To Other Countries, Particularly Until The 19Th Century; These Ambassadors Were Embraced, Per Ottoman Tradition. İn Turn, Western Ambassadors Were Prompted By The Need To Document The Cities, Particularly İstanbul, Social Structure, Customs, Administrative And Military Organization Of The Ottoman Empire; Apart From The Reports They Drafted Upon Their Return, They Also Took Advantage Of The Gifts And Paintings They Carried Along. Often Presumed To Be True-To-Life Visual Documents, Such Paintings Thus Became The Most Evident Expressions Of Respectability And Social Status, And Attained A Special Place And Meaning, Partly Due To Their Potential To Address The Masses. The Works That Ambassadors Commissioned To Artists They Added To Their Retinue En Route To The East Or To Their Local Counterparts They Encountered During Service, Evolved İnto Books With Engravings Or Collections Decorating The Walls Of European Chateaus, And Served As Source Material For Works By Other Artists, Thus Generating A Large Visual Repertoire On The Ottoman World. Ottoman Ambassadors Sent To European Countries Were Subjects Of Monumental Portraits Painted By Leading European Artists Of The Period, İmmortalizing These Historic Visits.İntersecting Worlds: Ambassadors And Painters Exhibition Catalogue Not Only Allows Us To Travel Across The Meandering Paths Of Diplomatic History Under The Guidance Of Art, But İt Also İntroduces Us To İntriguing Personalities. Ambassadors And Painters Continue To Communicate With Us Through A Silent Yet Equally Rich And Colorful Language Of Expression, Present Their Reports And Letters, And Share With Us Their Respective Periods, Worldviews, Travels And Experiences, As Well As The Ceremonies They Joined. Listening To Their Extraordinary Tales, İt İs İmpossible Not To Be Enraptured By The Splendor And Elegance Of A Lost Age.