Painter İbrahİm Tayfur opened his solo exhibition "Streets of Balat" at Gallery Eksen's exhibition venue in Istanbul's historic Balat district. Speaking to Anadolu Agency (AA) at the opening of the exhibition, Tayfur said he lives in Balat and so decided to feature everything about Balat in his exhibition.Explaining that he produces his paintings by feeling every paint and brush stroke, Tayfur said: "Balat is an important and old district of Istanbul. I could not ignore this place. The historical texture of the district, the neighborhood culture and Balat's people are the things that make this place special. I paint this historic texture in my artwork. I tried to bring the sincere feelings in the forefronts in my art. The streets of Balat are alive. Both its population and structures are transforming as a part of urban transformation which can be observed in my artwork." Tayfur said that the preparation process for the exhibition took two years and "Streets of Balat" is a first."Artists were previously involved in similar projects but an exhibition on Balat has never been held. In fact, the pieces featured in the exhibition were ready, but we have a chance to display them after an invitation came from Gallery Eksen. I am very exhibited to do something related to Balat. Every process of this exhibition has been a thrill for me. My main objective is to make people happy," Tayfur said. The exhibition will stay open until Aug 14.