MY STORY: BECOMING A CALLIGRAPHER
“Let us offer you a deal.” Those words, spoken to me by Dr. Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, would change my life — and bring me eventually into the company of M. Ugur Derman. It was January 1984, a cold winter day. We were in Ihsanoglu’s sedately ornate office in the Yildiz Sarayi in Istanbul. Across from me was Hasan Celebi, successor to the great Hamid Aytac and the leading calligrapher in Turkey — by extension, in the entire Islamic world.
“Let us offer you a deal,” Ihsanoglu repeated in his impeccable diplomat’s English. “In order to make progress in calligraphy, you must give up all you have learned and learn everything again from the beginning, from your hoca, who will be Hasan Celebi. If you accept, we will help you.”
Years of searching and self-instruction had landed me in this place, among these people here at the Research Center for Islamic Art, History, and Culture (IRCICA). I had reached a crisis in my art: I could make no progress. I had run into a barrier — calligrapher’s block, if you will. But now what was I to do? It seemed a bit insulting to be faced with such a choice at the age of 44. I could politely decline, walk away with my pride intact, and go see the sights of Istanbul. Or I could ignore my pride, roll up my sleeves, and begin.
