D group artists contribution to the republican period modern Turkish painting and education

Just after the declaration of Turkish Republic, young artists returning to their homeland from Europe came together and started to paint pictures relying on the concepts of cubism and constructivism with a desire to paint nature, objects and figures in geometrical shapes, going beyond the longstanding impressionism tradition. They gained nation-wide reputation with their pictures and exhibitions in a short time. Leopard Levy, who was appointed as the head of the academy, coming from abroad, appreciated their work of art, which leaded to their acceptance to the academy. As a result of their presence at the academy, some innovations took place in modern Turkish art and education. The aim of the study is to reveal the influence of D Group artists on modern Turkish art and education. Within this scope of this aim, a detailed document analysis was carried out. Books, journals, short notes, columns and articles that covered republican period art movements were examined via descriptive and content analysis. The population of the study consisted of artists who lived in the same period of D Group artists and who received one-to-one training from them, while the sample of the study was Adnan Turanî and Turan Erol. Adnan Turanî and Turan Erol were asked 16 questions within the scope of the study, and their responses were analyzed and interpreted in comparison to one another. It is found that document analysis is coherent with the interviews with Adnan Turani and Turan Erol. In accordance with the results obtained from written sources and interviews, the final conclusion of the study is that D Group artists contributed to the republican period modern Turkish painting and education. Key Words: D Group, Republican Period Turkish Painting, Cubism.