Turkey: Thousands flock to Picasso show in Izmir

By Halil Fidan

IZMIR, Turkey (AA) – Over the last two weeks at least 20,000 people visited a show spotlighting the works of famed artist Pablo Picasso in Turkey’s Aegean region.

The Picasso exhibit opened on Sept. 17 as part of the “Picasso-Mediterranee” project at the Arkas Art Center in the Aegean province of Izmir.

The exhibit focuses on Picasso's performance art through many of his paintings, costumes, sketches, sculptures, and photos.

The show features 83 works from the Picasso-Paris National Museum, Fondation Julio Gonzalez, Palais Garnier in Paris, and the Kontaxopoulos-Prokopchuk Collection in Brussels.

It also includes vintage photos showing the close ties Picasso enjoyed with other artists, writers, and musicians.

"Picasso-Mediterranee" was organized by more than 70 organizations in 10 Mediterranean countries and has drawn at least three million visitors since 2017.

* Writing by Havva Kara Aydin