19. Yüzyılda İngiliz Kadın Ressamların Gözünden Osmanlı Dünyası: VAM Searight Koleksiyonu

Abstract

This study discusses the approach to Orientalism, East and Eastern women by British women in The Orient at the time for various reasons; through Orient themed drawings and paintings in Victoria & Albert Museum (VAM) Searight Collection. The aim of this dissertation is to track down the Orient adventure of women travellers, to determine their relationship with the native population, local culture and its effects on the written and visual records of female memory, as well as documenting all those based on visual arts data by prioritizing Searight Collection. The presence impacts of the Orientalist movement, interest in exoticism as the trend of the period, society’s likes, interests and demands in the Europe, along with the marginalisation and discriminations targeting local communities; is seen via certain images in the artworks created over imaginary depictions rather than a physical experience. Portrayed with miserable, wild, exotic and erotic images in accordance with the Western hegemony, Oriental art; in many ways shows traces of the male perspective. The Oriental woman, has been reflecting this prevalent notion of male-point -of -view Orientalism in odalisque figures, Turkish bath scenes, slave market, daily life in harem compositions, and become a prevalent image in art that reached 20th century. This study determines where the Western women position themselves against the Orientalist representations of colonial power and how their relationship with Oriental women affects the artworks. To this end; the women artists identified having works in VAM and their biographies, travel writing records, reasons for their Orient visits and details about the paintings are being clarified considering the political and cultural conditions of the period. Furthermore; features such as the subject or technique of the pieces, the roadmap of Victorian era British women travellers, their impressions on Ottoman culture and lifestyle are also brought to light based on the data acquired from these artworks.