Turkish ceramics and arts have occupied an important place in the history of the Middle East and Islamic art. It dates back to the eight and ninth centuries. A resulting development began in the Ghazvanid, Karakhanid and Seljuk art. After the Byzantines lost to Seljuk in 1071 AD, ceramic art moved to Anatolia. Work from this location was highly complicated and included intricate designs on the surfaces of the ceramics. The primary designs had geometric, intricately decorated calligraphy and plant motifs. The colors that stood out were pistachio, black, yellow, lilac, cobalt blue and turquoise.
Birth of ceramic making
The ceramic art making process was inherited by the Ottoman Turks after which they developed some other techniques of ceramic making on their own. The Ottoman ceramic making dates back to the 15th and 16th century. One of the most important ceramic making centers was Iznik. The artists at the studios in the Ottoman court were brought to Iznik where some of the most beautiful ceramics were made. These ceramics were then used in the royal palace.
The artisans used techniques which were very complex and previously unseen. The pastes used to manufacture the ceramics were of great quality, pure white and hard. In order to get the perfect ceramic pieces, it was fired at 1,260 degrees Celsius as opposed to the standard 900 degrees. It was during this time that various motifs and designs were added to ceramics.
The meaning of designs
Most of the ceramics including tiles that were produced were symbolic and were used for decorative purposes. One can see the formation of flowers and leaves, which had to be viewed from a single viewpoint to fully capture the aesthetics. This is an indication that these ceramics were placed in cabinets and wall niches. Islamic symbols for paradise were gardens. This can be seen clearly on the ceramics owing to the abundance of life tree, leaves, clouds, grapes, pomegranates, carnations, dianthus, pelmets, roses, tulips, and vegetable designs.
Primary traits of Turkish ceramics and tiles
The ceramic tiles and ceramics have not been produced in the last 300 years, owing to which there is no documentation regarding the technology used. The tiles, however, showcase production methods that must have been complex to create such bright under-glazed ornamentation. The colors such as coral red were a combination of complicated mixtures which were probably difficult to source. Some of the ceramics had a matte finish which did not glare and had low reflection.
