Biography
Displaying talent from a young age, Fikret Muallâ enrolled in the Graphic Design Department at the Munich Academy of Fine Arts and later studied painting at the Berlin Academy of Fine Arts under Arthur Kampf (1864–1950). As a maturing artist, he was part of the Roaring Twenties—a period following World War I when artists embraced geometric patterns, rich ornamentation, and sleek, modern forms reflecting the era's dynamism and technological optimism, breaking away from traditional aesthetics. While studying in Western Europe from 1921 to 1926, Muallâ absorbed the shifting artistic trends of the time.
After graduating, Muallâ returned to Istanbul and became an art teacher. However, he soon resigned from his teaching positions at various high schools and moved back to Berlin. Between 1928 and 1930, he traveled extensively across Europe. This period profoundly influenced his artistic development, leading to the recurring presence of expressionist, metropolitan, and flamboyant motifs in his work.
Upon returning to Istanbul in 1930, Muallâ continued to explore his experimental experiences from Western Europe through painting and illustration. His identification as a figurative expressionist placed him among a generation of visionary avant–garde artists in Turkey, a group that included Hâle Asaf (1905–1938) and Arif Dino (1893–1957). These artists, Muallâ included, introduced avant-garde movements such as Expressionism, Abstraction, and Futurism to the Istanbul art scene, a significant shift from the prevailing tastes rooted in 19th-century aesthetics.
Muallâ played a seminal role in shaping the complex cultural landscape of 1930s Istanbul. He illustrated poetry books such as 3 Numara (Number 3) and Benerci Kendini Neden Öldürdü? (Why Did Benerci Kill Himself?) by eminent poet Nâzım Hikmet (1902–1963), a collaboration that significantly influenced his artistic style and themes. Additionally, he created vignettes, sketches, and illustrations for political magazines like Yeni Adam, Ses, and Yeni Ses.
Fikret Muallâ yearned for respect and recognition, a desire reflected in his choice of the surname Saygı (Respect) when the Turkish surname law was enacted in 1934. The name, which appeared as his signature on some works on paper, was not a random selection but rather a subtle expression of his longing for acknowledgment in the art world.
Following his first solo exhibition at Kapps Kitapevi (Kapps Bookstore) in 1934, which garnered little interest, Muallâ suffered from depression. He was subsequently admitted to the Istanbul Hospital for Mental Disorders and Neurology, where he shared a room with the poet, musician, and satirist Neyzen Tevfik (1879–1953). On December 31, 1938, he moved to Paris, believing that the French audience would be more receptive to his style and themes than those in Turkey. His disappointment with his native country, stemming from the lack of appreciation for his avant-garde style, led him to destroy many of his remaining works before leaving. He never returned.
Paris Years
Upon his arrival in Paris, Muallâ enrolled at the Académie de la Grande Chaumière, where he attended classes in the studio of Othon Friesz (1879–1949) in Montparnasse. During this period, he befriended several artists, including the Americans Herbert Gentry (1919–2003) and Kosta Alex (1925–2005), the German artist Wols (1913–1951), and the French artists Henri Michaux (1899–1984) and André Beaudin (1895–1979).
With the help of writer Henry Miller (1891–1980), Muallâ found a cheap room where he endured the difficult years of German-occupied Paris. During this time, he was inspired by monumental 19th-century history paintings, particularly those of Gustave Courbet, Jacques-Louis David, and Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres.
During and after World War II, Muallâ created small-scale narrative drawings and aquarelles depicting Parisian life. The interiors of cafés and brasseries, dramatic scenes from bordellos, the lively atmosphere of street markets, and touristy corners of the city became his favorite themes. Through these works, he developed a flamboyant visual language that would become his signature style.
In 1954, Muallâ held his first successful solo exhibition at the renowned Galerie Dina Vierny, followed by shows at Galerie Marcel Bernheim in 1958 and Galerie Bruno Bassano in 1964. His work, featuring selective scenes from Parisian cafés and streets, refined a narrative approach to expressionist figuration.
Muallâ’s close circle of artists and writer friends—including Moïse Kissling (1891–1953), Foujita (1886–1968), Abidin Dino (1913–1993), Max Jacob (1876–1944), Youki Desnos (1903–1966), and Jean Cocteau (1898–1963)—often served as inspirations and were sometimes depicted in his drawings. His background as a satirical draftsman and his knowledge of early German Expressionism is evident in his mid-career works, where some portraits evoke those of Otto Dix (1891–1969) and Jules Pascin (1885–1930), albeit with a less incisive and more melancholic tone. Despite his achievements, Muallâ’s later works became increasingly repetitive and decorative, yet they retained a unique sense of melancholy.
Late Years
Muallâ struggled with depression and alcoholism in the post-war years. By the mid-1950s, his mental health had deteriorated significantly. In 1956 and 1957, he was readmitted to the Saint-Anne Psychiatric Institute. During this time, art enthusiast Louis Lhermine (Birth and death dates are unknown) and art dealer and collector Oscar Ghez (1905–1988) supported him, negotiating special agreements to encourage him to paint. However, Muallâ’s volatile temperament, excessive drinking, and deep-seated fear of the police led to multiple arrests.
As he aged, his anxieties worsened, and he developed an intense fear of death. In 1958, his tragic fame was solidified with the publication of Moualla by celebrated model and writer Youki Desnos, as well as praise from Jean Cocteau, who referred to him as the “bohemian Turc.”
In the early 1960s, Muallâ met his patron, sponsor, and collector Fernande Anglès. In 1962, he was transferred to Anglés’ summer house in the small village of Reillane in southern France. However, in 1967, after suffering a severe nervous breakdown, he was admitted first to a hospital and later to a home for orphans in Manne, where he died.
More than 30 years after he departed from Turkey, Muallâ’s remains were finally repatriated with the help of a painter and a former first lady of Türkiye Emel Korutürk (1915–2013) in 1974 and laid to rest in Istanbul.
