Taste and Art

February 15, 2025 On February 15, 2025, the Friends of the Kitchen visited the Türkiye İş Bankası Museum of Painting and Sculpture to view the works of artists who capture the essence of flavor. At the museum on Istiklal Avenue, they toured the “Taste and Art” exhibition, curated by association member Prof. Gül İrepoğlu, tracing the traces of taste, the sociology of taste, and culinary culture in the visual arts. An expert art historian guided the Friends of the Kitchen as they toured the exhibition, which consisted of six thematic sections offering a feast for the senses—ranging from fields, vineyards, and gardens to still lifes; from marketplaces to shops; and from seafood to the preparation of food. 
We saw depictions of coffeehouses, restaurants, and dining tables, we also viewed the final section titled “Cânân ki Degüstasyon’a Gelmez”—named after Orhan Veli’s famous verse—before moving on to a midday raki feast at Sev-İç in Çiçek Pasajı, one of Beyoğlu’s classic venues. Originally located in the Old Krepen Passage, Neşe Meyhanesi moved to Çiçek Pasajı in the early 1980s. It has continued the traditional meyhane etiquette to this day by hosting gatherings of intellectuals in Beyoğlu.-İç, where glasses were raised in honor of the writers, illustrators, and artists who once sat at these very tables.