Cihat Burak, 1915-1994

After graduating from the Galatasaray Lycée, Cihat Burak enrolled in the Academy of Fine Arts to study architecture. Despite working as an architect all his life, Cihat Burak never abandons painting. He examined common social issues through his imaginary interpretations during the 1970s, when the art circles in Turkey were debating universality and locality. He depicted traditions using a contemporary language and infused many scenes from the stories featured in his paintings with a poetic and fable-like style. 

Taking its name from a verse by poet Asaf Halet Çelebi (1907–1958), “A Realm Where Strange Things Happen” brings together different structures and characters from Ottoman, European, and Indian cultures in a surreal fashion.