WISDOM OF SUFISM
WISDOM OF SUFISM
October 26, 2023 - January 11, 2024
Opening Reception: November 2, 5PM - 8PM
Villanova University Art Gallery
800 East Lancaster Avenue, Villanova, PA 19085
Wisdom of Sufism is a dynamic exploration of contemporary artistic responses to the profound spiritual tradition of Sufism. This group exhibition showcases diverse expressions inspired by the teachings of Rumi, a 13th century poet and theologian, delving into themes of self-discovery and transcendence.
Through the mediums of photography, painting, calligraphy, musical instruments, and interpretive dance, these artists offer a unique lens into the depths of the human spirit. By melding ancient wisdom with modern forms, they invite viewers to contemplate the universal truths that resonate across time and culture. Join us in this immersive journey that celebrates the enduring wisdom of Sufism, uniting past and present in a tapestry of artistic expression.
Meet the Curator
This exhibition was co-curated by Jennie Castillo, Director of the Art Gallery and Curator & Dr. Yasemin Akış, Department of Theology and Religious Studies at Villanova University
Dr.YaseminAkış
Dr. Yasemin Akış is a faculty member in the Department of Theology and Religious Studies at Villanova University. She earned her PhD in philosophy in 2014 and brings to the table over a decade of teaching experience in the fields of philosophy and theology. Her scholarly interests are centered around the Philosophy of Religion, Mysticism, Interfaith Dialogue, Middle Eastern Traditions, and Religions.
Six years ago, Dr. Akış introduced the "Wisdom of Sufism" course at Villanova, a testament to her passion for sharing the profound teachings of Sufi wisdom with students. This course has since served as a wellspring of inspiration for the Wisdom of Sufism Art Exhibition, a unique fusion of academia and artistic expression that delves into the spiritual depths of Sufism. Dr. Akış stands at the intersection of scholarship and artistry, illuminating the spiritual essence of Sufism from a philosophical aspect.
DevrimErbil
Devrim Erbil (born 1937, Uşak, Turkey) is a towering figure in modern Turkish art. His six-decade career has spanned painting, mosaic, printmaking, and tapestry, but he is best known for his lyrical interpretations of Istanbul’s cityscape.
Erbil’s style blends traditional motifs with modern sensibilities, often featuring a bird’s-eye perspective and a vibrant palette to capture Istanbul’s bustling life and scenic vistas. His work has been exhibited globally, and he has received numerous awards, including the prestigious title of State Artist from the Turkish government in 1991. In 2004, the Devrim Erbil Museum opened in Balıkesir, Turkey, to showcase his extensive body of work.
We’d like to thank Gözde Demirel for loaning this work from her private collection in Istanbul.
Istanbul (detail), oil on canvas, 49 x 51 inchesGizemSaka
Gizem Saka is a contemporary artist and Senior Lecturer in Finance at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business. Based in Bryn Mawr, PA, she balances academia with her art studio. Saka was raised in Istanbul and she pursued both economics and art, graduating from Koc University in 1999. She furthered her studies in economics at Cornell University, where she also explored painting. With over 20 exhibits worldwide, her work is collected publicly and privately. In 2020, she was commissioned for the public art project for Notos, which was awarded the 2nd place at the World Architecture Festival.
Saka continues to teach at Wharton. She consults with museums in revenue generation models, works with hedge funds in managing retirement portfolios that include artworks, and occasionally referees art markets research for academic journals.
Untitled, oil on canvas is pictured above Silent Ones: Women Watching Whirling Dervishes, oil on canvas, 66 x 102 inches will be on view during the show
ZinnurDoganata
Zinnur Doganata was born in Turkey and came to the United States to pursue her graduate studies in Electrical Engineering. She became master artist Mujgan Baskoylu's student in 2010, receiving her approval (icazet) for illumination and miniature in 2017.
Zinnur is a member of New York Islamic Arts (NYIA) founded by Ms. Baskoylu. Her work has been featured in multiple NYIA exhibitions both in the U.S. and abroad.
The King and Dervish (detail), 22 kt gold, platinum, and watercolor on treated paper, 14.5 x 12.5 inches
BehnazKarjoo
Behnaz Karjoo was born in Tehran, Iran and moved to the U.S. as a child. Karjoo developed a passion for art and delved into jewelry design and photography at the Fashion Institute of Technology. Inspired by Iranian mosque architecture, illumination, and calligraphy, she immersed herself in classical Islamic arts.
Guided by master Mujgan Baskoylu, she began studying illumination (tazhib) in 2011. Her dedication led to global exhibitions and a 2016 ijazet. Expanding her repertoire, she explored miniature painting in 2019 and kufic calligraphy in 2021. Behnaz is an active member of the New York Islamic Arts collective, preserving and promoting classical Islamic arts in the U.S. She believes in the timeless foundation of these arts, while continually pushing boundaries through experimentation with materials, colors, compositions, and designs.
The Folding Essence (detail), 23 kt red gold, 22 kt yellow gold, gouache and watercolor on treated paper, 20 x 20"
MujganBaskoylu
Mujgan Baskoylu was born in Turkey in 1963. She received a bachelor’s degree in business administration at Istanbul University and worked professionally in this field for thirteen years before she decided to change her career to pursue art. She studied illumination in a traditional Islamic arts school for three years and became a certified teacher in the fields of miniature, illumination and paper cutting.
Mujgan Baskoylu worked with Gulbin Messara, a master of illumination, for nine years. In 2002, she started to teach at the Art Studio of S. Unver in Istanbul University. In 2004, she partnered with Durdane Unver at the Turkish Traditional Art Center established by the President of the Turkish Parliament. Together, they started to teach papercutting at the Turkish Arts Foundation in 2006. Her first individual exhibition took place in Istanbul Beylerbeyi Palace in 2007. She moved to New York and has been conducting classes in Turkish illumination techniques as a master artist of paper cutting since 2011.
Gratefulness, Cut paper, platinum and 22kt gold on treated paper, 46 5 x 34 5"
Dr.JuanCastrillón
Dr. Castrillón is a multimodal cultural anthropologist, ethnomusicologist and artist. He is currently an assistant professor at the Arucad Arkin University of Creative Arts in Northern Cyprus. His research interests include theories of listening, media archives, contemporary healing arts, mimesis, and modalities of inscription. His work dialogues with contemporary debates about decoloniality, visual and sound/music cultures, and indigenous analytics of the person, space, magic, and technology.
Dr. Castrillón has been published in academic journals; exhibited at film festivals, art galleries, and academic conferences internationally. He is also a performer of Turkish Sufi Music, facilitator of a music therapy protocol, and pursues Arabic calligraphy and Ney reed-flute training under Turkish instructors.
Song For Sarah, Ney flute reconstruction and still video of Dr Castrillón performing
CarolineGutman
Caroline Gutman is a photographer based in Philadelphia and Washington, D.C. Her work often looks at political movements, gender and economic inequality and the creative economy, tying the past to the present.
Gutman has been published by The New York Times, National Geographic, Smithsonian Magazine, The Washington Post, The Guardian, ProPublica, Politico Magazine and NPR. She has received grants from The Pulitzer Center, the U.S. Department of State and the Economic Hardship Reporting Project and has had work exhibited at Photoville and the World Affairs Council (San Francisco). Most recently she was named a Critical Mass finalist and was selected for the Review Santa Fe juried portfolio review. Previously, Caroline was a Fulbright fellow in China where she documented Miao indigenous women artisans and their textile traditions.
Galata Lodge, printed on Photo Rag Baryta, 30 x 45"
AyşeÖzaydın
Ayşe Özaydın is an independent artist, specializing in fine art photography. After completing her BA in film, she focused on photography and received her Masters of Art. Currently, she is in the Proficiency in Arts program at Marmara University, Department of Photography and a lecturer in the Radio, TV and Cinema Department at Istanbul Nişantaşı University. She is also a part of the Phoenix Archeological Project’s Contemporary Art Program.
DenizÖzaydın
In her practice, she interested in the paradoxical relation and contradiction between photography and reality. She contemplates on external versus subjective reality through her art. Her creative approach relies on curiosity, exploration and experimentation. Her recent work is centered on creating with a strong emotional intensity, intending to evoke a shift in perspective.
Fana, From the Sema Ritual in Konya, 2023, 30 x 45"
DenizÖzaydın Choreographer/Dancer
Özaydın graduated from Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University State Conservatory Ballet Department in 2006. In the same year, he started his professional dance career at the Istanbul State Opera and Ballet.
Since 2011, he has made more than 15 choreographies in various ballet and contemporary dance companies of Turkey. He became a Choreographer in Residence at the Istanbul State Ballet in 2019. Özaydm’s choreography was made especially for this exhibition at Villanova University.
UtkuŞilliler
Musician
After studying solfeggio, harmony, piano and clarinet in the Music Department of Mimar Sinan University State Conservatory, he started working as a clarinet artist in the IBB Orchestras Directorate in 1996. In the 90s, he performed and recorded with many pop artists, composed advertising soundtracks. in the early 2000s, he took part in studies combining her music with choreography with the choreographer Ugur Seyrek at the Department of Modern Dance at Yıldız Technical University and began to give works in this field.
MertÖztekin
Dancer
He started his professional dance life in 2003. Öztekin graduated from Yıldız Technical University Modern Dance Department in 2011. He worked as an instructor, repetiteur and dancer in companies such as Contemporary Ballet Ensemble, Zeynep Tanbay Dance Project, Motto Dance Collective, Istanbul State Opera and Ballet Modern Dance Company (MDT Istanbul). Öztekin continues to teach, dance and produce projects within MDT Istanbul and independently.
WithSpecialThanks
This exhibition wouldn’t have been possible without the social media searching skills and general brilliance of Dr. Yasemin Akış. She has taught me what Sufism is, what it means, has developed relationships and traveled to Turkey - just for our exhibition. Thank you to Gizem Saka, Deniz Özaydın and Ayşe Özaydın for creating original work for this show. We also would like to thank New York Islamic Arts, the Department of Theology and Religious Studies, Center for Arab and Islamic Studies and the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at Villanova University as a whole and especially Dean Adele Lindenmeyer, PhD for the continuous support.
- Jennie CastilloG a a
Department of Theology & Religious Studies
Gizem Saka is a contemporary artist and Senior Lecturer in Finance at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business. Based in Bryn Mawr, PA, she balances academia with her art studio. Saka was raised in Istanbul and she pursued both economics and art, graduating from Koc University in 1999. She furthered her studies in economics at Cornell University, where she also explored painting. With over 20 exhibits worldwide, her work is collected publicly and privately. In 2020, she was commissioned for the public art project for Notos, which was awarded the 2nd place at the World Architecture Festival.
Saka continues to teach at Wharton. She consults with museums in revenue generation models, works with hedge funds in managing retirement portfolios that include artworks, and occasionally referees art markets research for academic journals.
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