Middle East's painter-princess finally gets her due
The artistic legacy of Fahrelnissa Zeid, an interesting figure of early Turkish modern art, gets spotlight back on the international art stage through a series of exhibitions in Istanbul, London, Berlin and Beirut.
Looking back at the life of the artist Fahrelnissa Zeid is to take a drama-filled tour of 20th-century Turkey, Europe and the Middle East. Zeid, with works exhibited in Turkey and Europe this year, lived a life that is much like her work — colorful and big.
Kerryn Greenberg, curator of international art at the Tate Modern London and co-curator of the Tate's current exhibition “Fahrelnissa Zeid,” said about her to The National, “It’s astonishing that an artist of such force and originality should have been practically forgotten.” This situation has been somewhat remedied, as Zeid — Ottoman aristocrat, painter, princess, ambassadress and teacher — takes a turn in the international spotlight this year with an exhibition not only in London, but also in Turkey (Istanbul Modern), Germany (Deutsche Bank KunstHalle Berlin) and Lebanon (Sursock Museum, Beirut).
