A genius in Turkey: Eşref Armağan at Kudret Eye Hospital

02.05.2008

A genius painter, Mr. Eşref Armağan (a Turkish painter with visual disability) visited our hospital. Our staff was very glad to host the genius painter and expressed that they were very impressed by his dynamism. Esteemed painter, who is also very cherful and full of spirit, shared various clues about the joy of life.

Eşref Armağan, is a very special Turkish painter. His works have been exhibited in all over the country and in various exhibitions in the world. 

The famous painter was invited to Italy  and recently by the Mayor of Shangai Metropolitan Municipality. For numerous times programs about him were prepared and broadcasted in both the Turkish Television Channels and in international channels like CNN and BBC. Evenmore, Discovery Channel prepared a documentary about the genius of valuable artist. 

Mr. Armağan is an inborn blind. He has never seen the sunset, the nature blossoming, greening in spring time or colors. His challanger charactere and spirit brought a voice to tell his emotions, in a way an eye to see the world. 

It is not possible not to be fascinated by the works of such a genius who can produce such divine art works without being able to see. The life history of Eşref Armağan is very touching; 

He was born in Istanbul, in one of the poorest quarters of Fatih 52 years before. Mr. Armağan did not receive any education wheter in his childhood or adulthood. He learned to write all by himself. When he was a child, Armağan was helping his father all the day by cutting chimney funnels and he was painting in his spare times. He was drawing with on paper when he was 6 and when he was 18th he begun to paint on paper with his fingers and later on painted with oil on canvas. He moved from the oil paint to acrylic paint on toile. His hands was his eyes. The fact that what he painted reflected the exact reality, made the painting as the principal passion of his life. 

Like all other geniuses, the mind of Mr. Armağan is extraordinary. The fact that he has not received any education or training does not allow him to be able to easily transfer the methodes of learning by themselves to ones like him; ones who in need of help, ones who desire to do something in the life. 

Harvard University scientifically analyzed the brain development of Painter Eşref Armağan who produced more than 300 paintings despite the fact that he is an inborn blind. The Neurology Proffessor Alvaro Pascual Leone from Harvard University conducted a magnetic resonance imaging test on the brain of blind painter. Lying on supine position for 3 - 4 hours, Mr. Armağan was subjected to certain tests. Doctors gave a number of items to Mr. Armağan and asked him to identify the items and to draw them. He succeeded in all steps and scientists were shocked by the genius of him.

We would like to take the occasion to thank Mr. Eşref Armağan and his esteemed wife, poet Ms. Nilüfer Armağan for the pleasant conversation we had.