Sunday, April 27, 2014

A new Easter Tradition: Eggs with a Turkish Flavor

Authored by Lachin Hatemi M.D.

A fascination with eggs and their perfect form inspired Peter Carl Fabergé, who was a renowned jeweler and goldsmith to the Russian Imperial Court. Fabergé created a total of 50 Imperial Easter Eggs for Russian emperors from 1885 to 1917, which became an Easter tradition in the Russian Imperial Court. When Russian Revolution of 1918 dethroned the Russian Czar, it also ended the storied Faberge tradition.

World-renowned artist Haydar Hatemi always wanted to create his own egg collection and bring the Faberge tradition back to life. While working on an egg collection for the Shah of Iran and Empress Farah Diba Pahlavi, Hatemi’s project prematurely ended, just like Faberge’s, due to a revolution. The Islamic Revolution of 1979 sent Iran into turmoil, and the Shah of Iran was forced to leave his country. A few years later, Hatemi left Iran himself with his family, but he never forgot about his dream.

Hatemi’s popularity continued to grow in his new adopted homeland of Turkey, where he re-established his atelier in 1983.  He was fascinated with the Ottoman Empire with his exuberance and glamour. After many years of creating Ottoman inspired art, Hatemi decided to fulfill his longtime dream of creating an egg collection, which became the inspiration for the “Ottoman Empire Collection.” Hatemi chose ostrich eggs as his medium.

When he first encountered a raw ostrich egg, Haydar recognized it as an ideal medium for his art. An ostrich eggs, with its porcelain-like qualities and texture, was a perfect choice. To create these precious eggs, Hatemi invented a special process to prepare the eggs for paintings. Each egg, an artistic tour de force, took two months or more to make.

The series of lavish Easter eggs created by Hatemi for his royal clientele between 2004 and 2012 is regarded as one of the artist’s most creative projects. These eggs are also considered as some of the latest great commissions of objects d’art in Middle East and Turkey. Haydar Hatemi created the Ottoman Sultans’ collection to commemorate one of the longest lasting and powerful dynasties of our near history. Thirty-six sultans who were all descendant of the Othman, the founder of the Ottoman Dynasty, led the Ottoman Empire. The Ottoman period, particularly during the 16th and 17th centuries, was marked by geopolitical dominance and cultural prowess, during which the sultans claimed the spiritual leadership of the Muslim world, before the empire’s slow decline culminated in its collapse during World War I.