Füreya Koral

Füreya Koral (12, June 1910 – 26, August 1997) was one of the first female Turkish ceramists whose work blended the elements of Islamic and Western art from the East with abstract and other influences from the West. She worked in a variety of media such as tiles, statuettes and panels.

Early life

Füreya Koral was born in Istanbul. Her father was Emin Paşa, who was an important soldier and statesman in the Ottoman Empire. Her mother was Hakkiye Hanım who was an educated woman but never attended a school. Like her aunts Fahrelnissa Zeid, Aliye Berger, Ayşe Erdem and her uncle Cevat Şakir Kabaağaçlı, Füreya was keen on music (especially piano and violin), painting and literature. She took her first violin lessons from Charles Berger who was going to be her aunt Aliye's husband. When she was 9, she was able to speak French like her mother tongue like the other members of her family.

She graduated from Lycée Notre Dame de Sion Istanbul in 1927. Afterwards, she studied philosophy in Istanbul University.

During her first marriage in Bursa, she aborted twice. She decided to end her marriage though she loved her husband. She married Kılıç Ali, who was a close friend of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk whom she had a love at first sight when she was 9. She moved to Ankara. During her marriage, she had a serious tuberculosis.

She was hospitalized in Leysen, Switzerland. When she was in sanatorium, her aunt Fahrelnissa Zeid sent her artific materials from London. It was the first step to meet her with ceramic.

Exhibitions

She had 32 expositions in several countries, including those in galleries such as Salon D'Octobre in Paris, the Museum of Modern Art in Ciudad de Mexico, Napstkovo Muzeum in Prague, Smitshonian Institute in Washington, D.C., and as well as various art galleries in Turkey.