Aşık Veysel, one of Türkiye's greatest folk poets, will be commemorated with an exhibition featuring items from his family's collection, including his death mask, at the Atatürk Cultural Center (AKM) gallery in Istanbul.
The exhibition, entitled "Veysel Gider, Adı Kalır," which roughly translates to "Veysel Passes Away, Yet His Legacy Remains," is being organized with the support of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism in honor of UNESCO's designation of 2023 as the "Year of Aşık Veysel."
The opening ceremony of the exhibition will be held on April 7 at the AKM's Gallery with the participation of Culture and Tourism Deputy Minister Özgül Özkan Yavuz.
Curated by Erkan Doğanay, the exhibition will consist of items from Aşık Veysel's family members Nazender Süzer Gökçe and Gürsel Gökçe's collection and will aim to introduce the poet's life, interviews, articles and news to a new generation. The exhibition will also include photographs by prominent artists such as Ara Güler, Fikret Otyam, Ozan Sağdıç, Mustafa Türkyılmaz, Ergun Çağatay and other photojournalists from the period, as well as paintings by Eren and Bedri Rahmi Eyüboğlu and Orhan Peker, a sculpture by Alper Çınar, and a mask made by artist Yusuf Toprak by taking a mold of Aşık Veysel's face after his death.
The exhibition will also feature a four-volume set of "Aşık Veysel in the Press," a book prepared in Braille code for visitors with visual impairments, and a recording of the same book narrated by theater actors. Additionally, the film "Karanlık Dünya" ("Dark World"), which realistically depicts life in Anatolia and features Aşık Veysel, will be shown for the first time at the exhibition. The film was directed by Metin Erksan and written by Bedri Rahmi Eyüboğlu in 1952.
The exhibition will be also displayed in Ankara and Izmir after Istanbul.
The "Veysel Gider, Adı Kalır" exhibition will be open until April 23 and will be free to visit every day except Mondays.
