The ‘60s and ‘70s

In the 1960s, some movements such as surrealism and conceptual art had a deep influence on the Turkish visual arts. The art language that was used until that time began to change. In the 1970s private companies, banks and/or wealthy individuals began to invest in art; thus an art market started to emerge even though its size was small. The art market developed by means of an increased number of private galleries and the opening of exhibitions. The art market contributed to the changing understanding of art, which started to drift away from more traditional notions of art. The 1960s and ‘70s can be seen as the inception period of the change movement in contemporary art, and as the start of a critical attitude in Turkish art.