A Kanun for the State, A Canon for the Arts

Conceptualizing the Classical Synthesis of Ottoman Art and Architecture

Abstract

The classical synthesis of Ottoman imperial art and architecture had been formulated by the 1550’s into a distinctive artistic canon of standardized forms, reflecting a new sense of self-identity and difference. Earlier receptiveness to foreign artistic models diminished. Growing religious orthodoxy affected a restraint in the use of gold and silver and in the representation of human figures. Great resources were invested in the manufacture of luxury textiles and innovative ceramics. The scale of patterns had grown bigger; architectural forms were magnified to produce unprecedented monumental effects.

Artistic production was integrated into the centralized administration of the state, based on the devsirme system, and concentrated in Istanbul. The visual culture that was formed at the capital spread to the provinces to cement Ottoman identity and unite the empire. At the same time it served to affirm the primacy of Istanbul, to differentiate the ruling elite from the rest of society, and to proclaim the social hierarchy within it.