Sabiha Ziya Bengütaş (1904 - 1992) Click for Artist Information

Sabiha Ziya Bengütaş  (1904-1992)

Sabiha Ziya Bengütaş  (1904-1992)

The first female artist to graduate from the sculpture department of the School of Fine Arts, Sabiha Ziya Hanım (later Bengütaş) began her primary education at the Eyüp Sultan Reşadiye Numune School. After her father Ziya Bey was assigned to Damascus, the artist went to Damascus with her family four years later, where she studied at the French Catholic School for one year.

After her family returned to Istanbul, Bengütaş began living in Büyükada and completed her primary education at the Köprülü Fuat Paşa School. Despite her family's insistence that she complete her high school education, the artist entered the İnas School of Fine Arts in 1919 without finishing her high school education due to her inclination towards art. She started her education in the Painting Department as a student of Feyhaman Duran, and decided to continue in the Sculpture Department after the antique bust she copied in a modeling class in her second year was appreciated by sculptor İhsan Özsoy.

Although Bengütaş had to take a two-year break from her sculpture education due to an illness, she did not break away from sculpture art during her illness and exhibited a bust in the Galatasaray Exhibition that opened in 1922. Bengütaş, who returned to her school after her illness, continued her education at the Sanayi-i Nefise Mektebi as the only female student among İhsan Özsoy's three male students when the İnas Sanayi-i Nefise Mektebi was closed and merged with the Sanayi-i Nefise Mektebi.

In addition to the three competitions she participated in in 1925, Bengütaş also came first in the exam held among the sculpture students of the School of Fine Arts to determine the student to be sent to Europe, but because she was a woman, Ratip Aşir Acudoğu [d], who came second, was sent instead. In 1926, Bengütaş also came first in the exam held by the Taksim Monument Commission to determine the artist to be sent to Canonica, the sculptor of the statue to be erected in Taksim Square in the name of Gazi Mustafa Kemal Pasha. In a letter written in French and dated 21 March 1927 and dedicated to Canonica in the Osman Nuri Ergin archives, it is stated that Sabiha Bengütaş came first and Hadi Bara came second, but that Bengütaş, as a young girl of 22, might have a chance of getting married. There were doubts about Bengütaş’s ability to succeed, and they did not want to send her abroad because she was a woman, but Mustafa Necati, the Minister of National Education at the time, who was one of the people who most embraced Atatürk’s ideas on women’s rights, intervened and signed a document stating that it was appropriate to send the artist to Italy, to Pietro Canonica, as a proxy. Sabiha Bengütaş did not work with Canonica for a long time after she went to Italy. Since Canonica had prepared the plans for the Republic Monument and the details of the casting section did not interest Bengütaş, the artist enrolled in the Rome Academy of Fine Arts and continued in Ermenegildo Luppi’s studio.

The artist, who returned to her country after her studies in Italy, participated in the European competition held at the Academy of Fine Arts in 1930, but did not come first. A versatile artist, Bengütaş was also a jury member in the beauty contest held in 1931 together with her colleague Rezan Ramiz Hanım.

After returning home, Bengütaş continued to participate in various exhibitions in the country and in 1933, she married Şakir Emin Bengütaş, the grandson of the poet Abdülhak Hamit Tarhan. Since her husband was a diplomat, the artist, who resided abroad for various periods, visited many museums and galleries and had the opportunity to closely experience the works of art and artistic approaches of different countries. Bengütaş, who lived in Italy for many years due to her husband's duty, continued her professional studies there. The artist, who was also in Moscow when her husband was assigned to Moscow, participated in an exhibition there in 1938.