The phenomenon of muslim veiling in contemporary Turkish art after 1980

This study aims to focus on the contemporary artworks that deal with the phenomenon of Muslim veiling after 1980 and explain what sort of common discourse they adopt, if any. Firstly, the history of veiling and the past of Muslim veiling in Turkey were explored to form a background for the study. The artworks were categorized according to their form and discussed chronologically. A total of three categories were formed for the artworks that are about chador, traditional headscarf, and turban, respectively. They were also divided into two subcategories as the artworks that refer to Turkey and the West. Since the contemporary Turkish artworks in the latter subcategory were few in number and the attitude of each Western country about the issue of Muslim veiling varies, the historical information about the topic was shared in the related parts of the study during the discussion of these artworks. Lastly, another category was formed for the artworks that deal with all of these forms of Muslim veiling. Having discussed all of the artworks, it has been understood that the phenomenon of Muslim veiling in contemporary Turkish art after 1980 is an issue that is complex and multi-layered in parallel to the history of Muslim veiling. Although it is not possible to talk about a common discourse for the artworks, it could be said each artwork has a unique and critical characteristic shaped in accordance with the values and meanings Turkey and the West have attached to Muslim veiling. The study is a first in its content and scope.