ISTANBUL — The narrow path surrounded by trees leading to the Abdulmecid Efendi Kiosk lends an air of calm and serenity on a gray autumn day in Istanbul, making it hard to believe that the estate had been the scene of vandalism in prior weeks. “Doors Open To Those Who Knock,” a contemporary art exhibition at the 19th-century pavilion, was attacked by vandals set on destroying artwork. The episodes took place after a social media campaign to remove “obscene statues” from the estate house once owned by the last Ottoman caliphate, Abdulmecid Efendi, who was also a painter whose works included a painting with nudes in a courtyard.

“The exhibition [sponsored by] Koc Holding at the house of the caliphate should stop. … This is a disgrace under the name of art,” tweeted Nilhan Osmanoglu, a descendant of the Ottoman dynasty and poster girl for the Ottomania of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP). According to conservative media, the exhibition shows “disrespect for the caliphate and believers.”

Curated by Melih Fereli and Karoly Aliotti, the exhibition consists of 30 works from the legendary private collection of the business mogul Omer Koc. It was organized as a satellite event of the 15th Istanbul Biennial, the major contemporary art exhibition, which Koc Holding sponsors. Among the works on display are a self-portrait by Taner Ceylan, whose artwork focuses on homosexuality, violence and reinterpretation of stereotypes, and a sculpture of a dead swan by Daphne Wright positioned masterfully next to a marble basin with a fountain in the tiled foyer. 

The main target of attack was the statue “Man Under Cardigan,” by the Australian artist Ron Mueck. The piece is a work of hyperrealism on loneliness, which is conveyed in the representation of a nude man sitting Turkish style and appearing to hide beneath a cardigan that covers his head and shoulders.