A 100-year friendship has merged with art.

On the 100th anniversary of Turkey-Japan diplomatic relations, ceramic products made in Japan were exhibited in Bolu. Works that combine Japanese tea culture with Turkish coffee culture were presented to the appreciation of art lovers.

To celebrate the 100th anniversary of Turkey-Japan diplomatic relations, the ‘Memory of Tradition International Ceramic Exhibition’ was presented to art enthusiasts. A ceramic exhibition was opened at Bolu Abant İzzet Baysal University (BAİBÜ) Faculty of Fine Arts. Due to a scheduling conflict, the artists who created the works in Japan could not attend the exhibition, where dozens of works were displayed for the appreciation of art lovers. Japanese ceramic artists reflected their tea culture in their ceramics. The coffee cup ceramics made in Turkey were taken to Japan to be presented to Japanese artists. In the event where the Turkish coffee culture and Japanese tea culture merged, the cultures of both countries were promoted. The exhibition held at BAİBÜ attracted significant interest from art enthusiasts. Prof. Dr. Melahat Altundağ, Faculty Member of the Ceramic Department of Fine Arts, stated, “A ceramic exhibition was constructed by artists from both countries to promote Turkish coffee culture and Japanese tea culture.”

“Celebrating the 100th anniversary of diplomatic relations”

Prof. Dr. Altundağ expressed that they are celebrating the 100th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Turkey and Japan, stating; “The Memory of Tradition exhibition is being held to celebrate the 100th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Japan and Turkey in 2024. In both countries, these celebrations are conducted through various events and conferences. As a department, we wanted to develop a project to celebrate this 100th year of diplomatic relations. We realized the work on the artistic side of diplomatic relations.”

“Turkey and Japan have a deep and rich heritage”

Prof. Dr. Altundağ stated that Turkey and Japan have a deep and rich heritage, saying, “In ceramic art, Turkey and Japan have a very ancient history and a profound and rich heritage. We wanted to bring together ceramic artists from both countries to create intercultural interaction. Coffee culture, which has great significance and place in Turkish culture, also has tea culture among the Japanese, and introducing these two cultures in each other’s traditions was our main goal to sustain the existence of our cultures. While carrying out the project, Turkish coffee culture was conveyed to Japanese artists, and the tea culture and the cups used in tea culture were explained to Turkish ceramic artists. A mutual interaction was established, and the cups of our Turkish coffee culture were applied by Japanese ceramic artists. They realized this with their own understanding, their own ceramic language, and their own expressions. Our ceramic artists in Turkey also presented the Japanese tea cups used by the Japanese in their own way, resulting in such an exhibition. We would have liked to host our Japanese ceramic artists here in Turkey. But due to various reasons, perhaps the schedule did not align, although we could not host them, we welcomed their works both in our faculty and it became a beautiful collection left to our faculty.”