Miniature painting as a different way of seeing: The topographic paintings of matrakçi Nasuh, Farkli bi̇r görme bi̇çi̇mi̇ olarak tasvi̇r: Matrakçi nasuh'un topografi̇k tasvi̇rleri̇

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to show that ways of seeing which are not modern cannot be described as backward and that they rather depend on different views of reality, space, time and the individual. Towards this aim, landscape paintings and miniatures will be compared with regards to their conceptions of time, space, reality and the individual and the way they position their spectators will be explored. The selection of the topographic miniatures of Matrakçi{dotless} Nasuh and Western landscape paintings for this analysis is due to their direct representation of space and the convenient ground they provide for decoding the cultural conceptions of time, space and the individual they embody. The way of thinking that gave them birth can be traced in these conceptions inherent in these artworks. Because modernity depends on the idea of progress, it defines the others as backward and under-developed. This results from the claim that perspective painting represents reality objectively, but the main axis of analysis of the perspective should be subject positioning rather than objectivity. Thus, the aim of this article is to problematize the claims of the modern way of thinking to absoluteness and objectivity and to put forth the possibility of other ways of seeing. © 2013 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.