The Highly Acclaimed “İZ-DÜŞÜM” Design Exhibition Concluded Today

Istanbul Nişantaşı University’s Maslak NeoTech Campus hosted the solo design exhibition titled “İZ-DÜŞÜM” by Asst. Prof. Dr. Nursen Geyik Değerli between 06.03.2026 and 16.03.2026.

The İZ-DÜŞÜM exhibition is an interdisciplinary design project focusing on the transfer of the visual memory of one period onto a different time and material. The exhibition is based on the transformation of the colour blue, historicaly regarded as a “noble and inaccessible” symbol of luxury, into denim, one of today’s most democratic and widely used materials.

Bringing together the ancient block-printing motifs of Anatolia and denim fabric, a symbol of modern clothing culture, the project combines palace aesthetics with street culture and rigid industrial textures with fluid, loose-fitting garment forms. While examining the place of traditional handicrafts in modern textiles, the project aims to transform the aesthetics of the past into a contemporary design language.

The Memory of Blue and Craftsmanship Left a Lasting Impression

Taking visitors on a historical journey from the ancient indigo blue of Anatolia to contemporary denim culture, the exhibition attracted considerable interest from art enthusiasts, academics and students.

The collection, in which stylised and anonymous Anatolian motifs were imprinted onto denim surfaces using wooden blocks carved from linden wood, reopened discussions on the place of traditional craftsmanship in modern textile design.

An Interdisciplinary Achievement

The exhibition, which brought traditional caftan forms together with modern silhouettes, emphasised that design is not merely an aesthetic outcome but also a process of “resistance” and “memory” at every stage, from sewing and printing to washing and stamping.

The works, displayed for ten days in the NeoTech Campus Foyer Area, once again demonstrated the sustainability of traditional Turkish textile arts within the modern fashion industry.

We would like to thank al our guests who visited the exhibition, our academic staff for their invaluable support, and Asst. Prof. Dr. Nursen Geyik Değerli from the Department of Textile and Fashion Design at the Faculty of Art and Design for bringing this project to life.