Nurdogan Şengüler: Excerpts from His Life – Part 2
NURDOGAN ŞENGÜLER
Founder & Project Lead — Gallery Les Arts Turcs
Nurdogan Şengüler is the Founder and Project Lead of Gallery Les Arts Turcs, an independent art gallery and cultural center in Sultanahmet, Istanbul.
Founded in 1997, Gallery Les Arts Turcs was created as a meeting place for artists, photographers, musicians, journalists, professional guides, entrepreneurs and people from different cultural backgrounds. From its beginning, the gallery has focused on bringing people closer to Turkish arts, cultural traditions and creative expression.
For Şengüler, art is not limited to objects displayed on a wall. It can be a way of meeting people, discovering a culture and creating a connection between different parts of the world.
This idea has shaped his work at Les Arts Turcs for nearly three decades.
A Meeting Point Between Cultures
Located in Sultanahmet, in the historic heart of Istanbul, Gallery Les Arts Turcs has welcomed visitors, artists, photographers, journalists, writers, travelers and creative people from many different countries.
Under Şengüler’s direction, the gallery has developed a wide range of artistic and cultural activities, including experiences connected with Ebru, Turkish marbling, calligraphy, ceramics, miniature art, mosaic and other traditional Turkish arts and crafts.
The gallery’s philosophy is simple:
Art can bring people together.
Rather than presenting Turkish culture only as something to be observed, Les Arts Turcs has developed experiences that allow visitors to meet artists, learn about artistic traditions and participate in the creative process.
Beyond the Traditional Workshop
Şengüler’s work at Les Arts Turcs has also extended beyond traditional workshops.
Over the years, the gallery has been associated with artistic and cultural projects involving photography, dance, music, traditional arts, cultural encounters and international creative collaborations.
A profile of Les Arts Turcs described the gallery as a resource connecting visitors with artists and Turkish arts, and specifically identified Şengüler as the founder of the arts center. The article also highlighted projects including photography, Ebru, calligraphy, dance and other artistic activities.
The gallery’s own archive also documents projects organized or supported by Şengüler, including photography and other creative collaborations.
From Turkish Arts to the World of Scent
In recent years, Şengüler has expanded his creative work into the world of scent and perfume.
Through Istanbul Perfume Workshops, he explores perfume not simply as a commercial product, but as a creative and cultural experience connected with memory, emotion, natural raw materials and Istanbul.
His current work also includes the development of the Isparta Rose Oil Experience, inspired by the rose-growing region of Isparta and the journey of natural rose oil from the fields to personal fragrance creation.
These projects represent a continuation of the same philosophy that has guided Les Arts Turcs since 1997:
to discover culture through direct, personal and creative experience.
Current Projects
Gallery Les Arts Turcs
www.lesartsturcs.com
nurdogan@lesartsturcs.com
Instagram : @nurdogansengule
