Depictions of women in the Osman Hamdi Bey's works

Osman Hamdi, who directed the art of painting, which is one of the transmitting elements of culture, by processing figurative subjects in portrait, still life, charcoal and Turkish painting with a Western understanding for the first time, reflected Ottoman life on canvas in a clear and understandable way in his works. He is an artist who has successfully influenced our minds by attributing various meanings to the figures he uses in his paintings. In his portraits, he painted mostly people from family members; while doing this, he favored a simple naturalness without exaggeration and was influenced by impressionism, which was influential during his time. Osman Hamdi Bey made his name in the 19th century Ottoman art of painting with his orientalist style in his paintings, the main theme of which was women, he painted women in life, sometimes with his instrument, sometimes while reading a book, and sometimes at outdoors. Hamdi Bey, sometimes adopted a questioning and critical stance towards his era in his paintings, by conveying messages that could be considered as unconventional for his time. In his artworks, the artist sometimes depicted women in a free and liberated manner, with their heads uncovered. In other works, he portrayed women dressed in European-style fashion, helping us understand the evolving clothing styles of Turkish women who were trying to keep up with the trends of their time. Through these depictions, he has reshaped the Western perception of the Eastern women. As a result, Osman Hamdi synthesized the culture of the East with the education he received in the West and left original and permanent works that have reached to this day. The modern, enlightened Western style has constituted a harmony with the traditional Eastern style in his works. He broke the known molds and the limits of formalism, challenging the mentality of his time, and became an exceptional artist who left a mark on the 19th century. Key Words: Orientalism, Turkish Painting, Depiction of Women, Osman Hamdi Bey