Gesture after the Gestural: Abstract Expressionism, American Visual Culture and Post-War Painting in Turkey
Keywords:
Abstract Expressionism, American visual culture, Turkish cinema, post-war painting, cultural influence, visual textsAbstract
This article analyzes the influence of post-Second World War American visual culture on Turkish society, particularly through the lens of Abstract Expressionism. The paper argues that while Hollywood cinema and television have significantly shaped global visual culture, their impact in Turkey has been interrupted by local resistances and counter-practices. The author contends that Bernard Steigler's hypothesis about the 'macdonaldization' of the world through Hollywood and Jonathan Crary's argument linking television screens and car windscreens provide a framework for understanding Turkish visual culture post-1945. However, this study demonstrates that these hypotheses are incomplete without considering the emergence of counter-practices such as Yeşilçam cinema and the complexities of road use in Turkey. The paper explores how visual texts guide passage across framings, attracting or distracting attention, and proffering models of action. This work investigates the inter-relation of different kinds of visual texts to understand cultural dynamics and the influence of American visual culture on Turkish society.
(The abstract and keywords were prepared retrospectively for indexing purposes using AI-assisted tools and editorial review, based on the original article. They did not appear in the original publication.)
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