Former ICE Graduate Research Assistant Marie Porterfield Barry shares her extraordinary experiences as a Fulbright Fellow in Turkey through her online journal, Kütahya İlluminated.
Kütahya is a city in Western Anatolia Turkey where ceramics have been produced for thousands of years. According to the story, many many years ago a maiden brought a plate to a bazar at which vendors were selling their goods from around the world. A terrible accident occured and her beautiful painted plate was dropped but, miraculously, it did not break. People from all corners of the world ran to her asking her where she found the clay. Kütahya. Since that time, many centuries ago, artists have been coming to this city to build and paint ceramics. I came here to drink tea at an ancient castle whose floor spins in circles and whose tunnels lead to old Ottoman houses and that is where I heard her story.
Kütahya İlluminated is an illumination of traditional techniques of illuminating on ceramic surfaces through the eyes of a foreigner living in an illuminated city as beautiful as a dream.
Marie Porterfield Barry is an American artist living in Kütahya, Turkey studying traditional tile painting and practicing imagination. For images of her work and more information, please visit her website: http://marieporterfield.com.