Impressions from three Museums In New York, Istanbul and Bayburt:
Jewish Heritage, Baksi and Cinema and Theatre Museums


Baksı Museum and Library at Bayraktar Village, Bayburt

by Yuksel OKTAY

An Exhibition at the Museum of Jewish Heritage in New York City - The Morgentahus - A Legacy of Service

On a snowy day on Januay 28 2010, Thursday, bus loads of students from a high school in Bronx, New York, visited the "Musem of Jewish Heritage", as thousands do from all over New York, according to one of the atendants. They were entering the magnificient building as I left the museum and had a chance to speak to one of the students and asked her about Turkey and Turks. She said that she did not really know anything about the Turkish history, but was aware of the fate of the jews, hence the reason for a visit to "a living Memorial to the Holocaust", as the building dedicated to Robert Morgenthau produly displays.

The new three story muesum near the Bowling Green subway station and the park near the tip of Manhattan has three permanent exibitions: Jewish Life a Century Ago, the War Against the Jews and Jewish Renewal, with a nine-minute muti-media presentation introducing the Jewish experience in a montage of images and words that speak to people of all ages and backrounds, including young students.

Then, there is also an exhibition on the Morgenthaus, a prominent Jewish-American fmily who have served their country through three generations, on the third floor of the Museum that will be on display throughout 2010. The people from around the world will be coming to Istanbul for the celebration of Istanbul 2010 Capital of Culture activities, and in New York, thousands will be exposed to yet another anti-Turkish propaganda through a falsified exhibition.

As one enters the exhibition area, a huge map of the world greets the visitor, complete with photographs of the three generation Morgenthaus beginning with the Sr who emigrates to the States from Germany in the late 19th century. (Attachment 2). His son, Henry Morgenthau, a wealthy real estate developer and life insurance agent, gets himself appointed as the Ambassador to the Ottoman Empire through his genereos contributions to Presdient Wilson' camapign. Although he represented the United States of America in the Ottoman Empire, he acted on his own to portray Turks as th enemy of the minorities and himself the saviour of the Armenians, bluntly stating in his book, "Ambassador Morgenthau's Stroy", that Turks should be driven out of Europe and even the Aisa Minor.

The exhibition, through photographs and a video presentation, first tells the story of the Armenians, without mentioning the revolts, the rebellions and the massacres of Turks by the Armenians. The students that I met at the entrance will view the exhibition wthout the slightest idea as to what the reasons were for the relocation of Armenians. They will not know that the Museum is being used s a tool of anti-Turkish propaganda through fale images and fabricated stories, just like the US Museum of Holocaust in WDC which displayes a fabricated statement by Hitler, which has to be removed.. There is a panel which states that 30,000 Armenians were killed during the 1909 Adana incidents, which is actually known as the Armenian atrocties and massacers were on both sides. On the video presntation, the claim that 1.5 million Amenians were killed, is repeated, hich is the biggest fabrication of the Armenian issue.

In the well stocked Museum shop, many books on the Armenian issue are on sale, including "Ambassador Morgenthau's Stroy", "The Burning Tigris," and "Armenian Golgotha: A memoir of the Armenian Genocide, 1915 - 1918," and more. Peter Balakian, the author of both books, spoke about his uncle's memoir on December 2, 2009 at the Museum, which I missed. Many other presentations have been held which has not been mentioned by any Turkish organizations that I know. The falsificaion presented and the misinformation on the Armenian issue to the public, including thousands of young students, are continuing with no protests from the Turkish-American organizations that I am aware of....

The media sponsor for the Morgenthau exhibition is "Manhattan Media", and the museum can be visited at www.mjhnyc.org/

Yuksel Oktay, 29 January 2010, New York City

Baksı Museum and Library at Bayraktar Village, Bayburt
Created by Prof. Dr. Hüsamettin Koçan

Coruh river which originates in Mescit Mountain near Bayburt, first flows west, than North and finally eastwards and empties into the Black Sea in Georgia after 410 kilometrs of journey. It is a beatiful river with huge canyons and areas where rafting is a hobby not only for the local people but for many visitors from around the world. Unfortunately, the river is under assault with the construction of over 10 dams on Coruh river plus 20 in the tributary rivers that run into Coruh (1). Luckily, the Baskı Museum high on a hill overlooking Coruh will not be inundated when Yusufeli HEPP is completed and completely submerge the town with the same name, not too far from Bayburt and Bayraktar.

Baksı Museum is located in Bayraktar village 45 kms from central Bayburt. The Museum is the creation of Prof. Husametttin Koçak and a gift to the village where he was born. Bayraktar used to be known as Baskı ‘’healer, hepler, protector’’ in Central Asia. The Museum brings modern art and traditional crafts under the same roof in a modern structure that is different from any other museum in Turkey or the world (Photo 1.) The Museum also has a large library with over 7,000 books, the reason why I added ‘’Library’’ to the name of the Museum, which I hope will be taken into account.

I visited Baksı Muesum back in October, 2004 when the construction of the Museum was just starting (2). Today the complex consists of a Guest House, a large exhibition hall (50,000 square meter), conference hall, workshops and a beautiful library with over 7,000 volumes. During a meeting at Baskı, attended by governors, mayors, civil servants from Erzurum and the village people, Koçak has stated that this Project could neither be called a social responsibility or a museum; it must have a different name. He added tha Baskı will hold the inventory of the past and the future.

Before my long drive along the Çoruh River on my way to Ikizdere and Artvin to visit the hydroelectric power plants under construction, I went to Baksı Museum and to Bayraktar. The Museum was closed but when one of two guards who saw me wondering around came and opened the doors for me. There were exhibitons of modern art as well as the creations by 30 artists who spent 6 months at the Museum, celebrating the opening with their own work. Than he took met o the library, which was quite a surprise. There were many books donated by the Ministry of Culure and Tourism, among them a large book on the life of Prof. Dr. Idris Küçükömer, edited by Ahmed Güner. This was a moving experience since Küçükömer was married to one of my nieces, Meral Küçükömer, before he died in 2007. There was also a book on trains, ‘’Trenler Anılardan Geçer’’ by Aykut Tankuter and published by Novartis.

Bayraktar is less than a mile from the Museum where I met Muhtar Nabi. He invited me to his brother’s house where he was staying after his house had burned down a month ago. I met his wife and 2 of his daughers and 2 sons. His 5th daughter was outside playing. His wife prepared lunch for me, which I ate alone since it was Ramadan and all of them were fasting. One of his daughters was a table tenis champion at her high school in Bayburt and her composition on Tachers Day had won the first place. Below is her composition which is filled with admiration to her teacher.

Notes.

(1) For an in-depth study of hydro-electric power plant developments and their impact on the Coruh valley and the environment, please see ‘’Kusursuz Enerji (!), Inanılmaz Bir Mel’anetin Anatomisi’’ by Yurtdaş Mazlum Çoruh, (www.yusufelim.org.tr)
(2)Baskı Museum and Research Center for Folk Art, Bayraktar, Oct 30, 2004. Article by Yuksel Okday

Yuksel Oktay, 18 August 2010, Erzurum

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Cinema and Theatre Museum in İstanbul moves to Beyoglu

The Cinema and Theatre Museum created by Turker Inanoglu, the Chairman of the Türker Inanoglu Foundation (TURVAK), moved from Kavacık to its new location in Beyoglu, near Galatasaray Lise early this year. The three story museum is full of rare artifacts from Turkey’s cinematic history and includes a 50,000 plus book Library. There is also an education center, coordinated by the Museum’s director Erol Şenel. The day I visited the Museum and Library, many students were busy observing the historical movie equipment and admiring the vax statues of famous artists. It ıs a wonderful place to visit, especially fort he Turkish-Americans who come to Turkey on a personal or business trips.

Some of the cinema and projection machines displayed date back to early 1900s. Photographs of many immortal Turkish cinema and theater artists are also displayed. Most of the collestions are from Erler Film, establishged by Türker Inanoglu in 1960 after he moved to İstanbul from Safranbolu, which still produces some of the TV series. There are also paintings and caricaturs of Faruk Alpkurt who worked as cartoonist for the Hayat magazine in the 60s and 70s.

Separate rooms are dedicated to the works of several important contribuors to the world of cinema and theater in Turkey. The Fuat Uzkınay Cinema Machines Hall displays the first sound recording camera that Turkish director Muhsin Ertuğrul used. Fuat Uzkınay made the first Turkish film who is remembered by his photographs and many documents, including the typewriter written scenarios used in the film.

It is a nostalgic place to visit and see the photographs of hundreds of artists that we watced in the movies. As I walked outside, I thought perhaps a Turkish Library and Museum should be established in New York City to give the new generation of Turks growing up in America an opportunity to appreciate their heritage and show their American friends the rich culture and history of Turkey and famous Turks beginning with Mustafa Kemal Ataturk.

Yuksel Oktay, Januray 25, 2011-03-08, Istanbul.

Special Thanks To: Isa ALEMDAG - http://www.nationofturks.com/