special projects

Turkish-American Projects in Art and Design

Tulip and Arabesque
The traditional motifs of the tulip and arabesque have had multiple meanings throughout Turkish history. By studying them, university students were challenged to re-apply and re-contextualize these significant forms into their own artworks and into art lessons they would teach to children. This encourages a global curiosity and cross-cultural appreciation. It encourages students of all ages to be informed and compassionate world citizens.

UMD students were introduced to Ottoman ceramics and Turkish Calligraphy by visiting art professors from Baskent University. Then the project went into area schools in a collaborative partnership between University of  Minnesota Duluth Art Education students and school children in Duluth  Minnesota through classroom visits.

Participants
Students in Prof. Alison Aune's UMD Art Education courses
Students in Joellyn Rock's UMD Digital Design courses; Professor Filiz Yenis¸ehirlioglu, Dean, Faculty of Arts, Design and Architecture, Graphic Design faculty Instructors Halime Fisenk and Murat Devrim Atilgan; Elementary and Middle School age children from Duluth Minnesota; Graphic Design students and faculty from Baskent University, Ankara, Turkey
Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program grant recipients, Natalie Patrick and Amber Szerpicki

Digital Carpets
After investigating symmetries in traditional Turkish carpet designs students created their own carpet designs using digital tools. Their original motifs for border and field patterns resulted in final designs that reflect an understanding of mathematical pattern and a playful experimentation with digital image making. Students first rendered a final, large-scale printed piece using color harmonies of their own choosing. Finally, animation techniques were used to combine digital patterns with electronic music to generate rhythmic motion graphics.

Participants
Students in Joellyn Rock's UMD beginning design courses;
Halime Fisenk and Murat Devrim Atilgan from Baskent University

Rumi Poetry Projects
Students were introduced to the poetry of Mevlânâ Celâleddin Mehmed Rumi, the 13th Century mystic whose work crosses national and ethnic borders. Rumi has had a significant influence on both Persian and Turkish literature throughout the centuries and is now one of the most widely read poets in America. Each student selected a translated version of one of Rumi's works and created a digital word and image interpretation of their own.

Final versions of the Rumi Poetry projects took the form of mixed-media accordion-fold books. More advanced students were urged to work experimentally, using new formats and materials for their final renditions.

Participants
Students in Joellyn Rock's UMD design courses
Halime Fisenk and Murat Devrim Atilgan from Baskent University

Dijital Pasaj
Digital Studio students devised an online experience that would allow students on the other side of the globe to visit our town. Each student chose a site in Duluth to document and transform into a personal narrative. Visitors to the site can move through this digital environment, accessing short quicktime movies that offer an off-beat vision of life in Duluth. Dijital Pasaj is Turkish for Digital Passageway. The project results can be seen at:  http://www.d.umn.edu/~jrock2/dijital_pasaj/

Participants
Students in Joellyn Rock's UMD digital studio courses; Halime Fisenk and Murat Devrim Atilgan from Baskent University

Duluth Design Inventory Books
Students were asked to explore the natural and created environment of Duluth with extensive visual documentation (photography and drawing), and then to create an "artist's book" as a message and gift to their fellow students in Turkey. Varied in form, and combining documentary observation and cultural and personal expression, the books were created to give UMD students’ Turkish peers a collection of visual reference materials collected with a designer's eye.

Participants
Students in Rob Wittg's UMD design courses; Students in Halime Fisenk’s Baskent University design courses

Typography Alliance Project

Impressions of Ankara and Duluth
These large-field compositions by UMD students were composed in response to the challenge to make individual and collaborative single page "Impressions of Duluth" in response to the delightful  "Impressions of Ankara" made by Baskent University students. They were meant to inform and inspire our Turkish collaborators in making their logos for Duluth in the Ankara and Duluth Logo project.

Participants
Students in Steve Bardolph's UMD design and typography courses; Students in Halime Fisenk's Baskent University design courses

Ankara and Duluth Logos

In a spirit of collaboration, experimentation, and curiosity, Turkish students researched northern Minnesota and designed logos for the city of Duluth while American students researched central Turkey and designed logos for the city of Ankara. The exchange exposed and helped dismantle stereotypes, explored cultural perspectives, and revealed contemporary and historical design sensibilities.

Participants Students in Steve Bardolph's UMD design and typography courses; Students in Halime Fisenk's Baskent University design courses