Gönül Sen-Menzel: Turhan Selçuk on Her Exhibition – Column in Vizyon

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This article was published in Turkish. The original text, with a German translation, opens in a new tab in the German section of this website.

The last book I read was Hasan Cemal’s “Demokrasi Korkusu” (“The Fear of Democracy”). Very good – the sales figures already show that. A good nonfiction book • The last thing I bought was a concert cassette by Theodorakis. I am convinced: if artists rather than politicians ruled the world, peace would come much faster. Artists find each other much more easily than politicians. The people know that too • “Bin Yıllık Arı” (“The Thousand-Year-Old Bee”) was a TV series I liked watching • The last exhibition I saw was Gönül Şen’s at Galerie Vepa. She lives in Germany and is also a teacher. It was an interesting exhibition • The last time I ate out was with my daughter and my wife at the restaurant Emmim in Levent

• Last October I was a guest at the culture festival in Muğla. A culture festival that stands out from the festivals in other provinces: scholars and artists take part, and there are lectures and exhibitions. A first, lovely step. This year there is a nationwide cartoon competition, which is to become an international competition with an exhibition next year. A cultural center is about to be completed, and a cartoon museum is planned alongside the city museum • What has moved me most recently is that Atatürk’s reforms are disappearing more and more. That must be solved through the people’s votes • Yesterday was my sister’s birthday. I gave her a Borcam dish from Paşabahçe • My brother İlhan Selçuk gave me a pair of black velvet trousers 15 or 20 days ago • I mostly work at home. With my drawings I am actually in the middle of all social events • The last thing I bought for myself was a pencil with 0.5 lead • The last match I watched was an Ajax game in the UEFA Cup. An interesting, good game • I read all the newspapers and magazines, above all Cumhuriyet. That is necessary for my work anyway.

The column appeared in the magazine Vizyon, Istanbul, No. 85, June 1987. Gönül Şen is mentioned in the highlighted section. Translated from Turkish for senmenzel.com.