When former U.S. President Harry Truman saw expressionist Japanese-American painter Yasuo Kuniyoshi's "Circus Girl Resting" in an exhibit that displayed some of the modernist trends in American visual art, he commented, ''If that's art, I'm a Hottentot.'' Then what is art? People hubbub that the extraordinary visual images and modern symbolism of contemporary art require hard intellectualism to grasp the meaning of a piece or comment that a 6-year-old could draw it. They avoid going to art exhibitions.

Yet I believe that the purpose of art is to evoke a feeling in you, showing something you see, and you will surely find your piece in the Artweeks@Akaretler event.

Akaretler rowhouses transform the dynamic texture of Istanbul's Beşiktaş into a cultural hub with its sixth edition of Artweeks@Akaretler, which praises the diversification of contemporary art with exhibitions of galleries, independent artists, and collectors. The event, which has not demanded an entrance fee since its first edition, displays contemporary artworks in separate rooms with different entrances that stimulates deeper engagement with the pieces and their stories.

This year Artweeks@Akaretler also aims to create a new phenomenon in the art world with the non-fungible token (NFT) digital exhibition, which will be held simultaneously with the collaboration of Bilgili Art and Carny.io. To reach more crowds, different art galleries will be welcoming art enthusiasts until April 10 in the rowhouses that occupy numbers 11, 12, 15, 17, 19, 37-39 and B2/2-3-4.

There are so many works in this event that you may spend almost a day and maybe even want to see it again later. Since it's impossible to include all of the 15 valuable galleries, I'll discuss the galleries that really caught my attention during the sneak preview.

MERKUR Gallery

Sabiha Kurtulmuş is the director and is also behind the organization of the event. The gallery aims to make art accessible by uniting the artists and the spectators by presenting a special selection consisting of young talented artists.

Well-known for her opt-art works, Zeynep Çilek Çimen's abstract paintings seek the possibilities of form. She rhythmically places the motifs in the center of her composition, through which she aims to convey a symbolic message. Also, she takes on an interesting optical approach by repeatedly abstracting the motifs of her painting. She interprets themes through images that represent a bridge that connect the past to the present. Her art process is her communication with her emotions, the artist says. Embracing the pioneer of abstract art, Wassily Kandinsky's principle of "the figure breaks the spell of color and form," Çimen struggles to maintain this magic.

Şerife Bilgili Ercantürk's solo exhibition

In contemporary art, the term constructivism is mostly associated with destruction. However, Şerife Bilgili's literal construction-restoration experience gave way to her art exhibition through the concepts of construction (the term refers to creation) and connection. Her collection entitled "Bağmana" can be roughly translated as "bond-meaning" and relies on the urban memory in which ideas and objects are locked into a single place and time focuses on the bond with the individual and structure.

Akaretler's construction, itself a result of a restoration project, offers a meaningful space for this exhibition. This collection, which offers the opportunity to wander through the canvases, basically builds art through the meanings established by bonds. The bond that the artist established with the structure individually constructs the "meaning." Since the artist has adopted the concept of construction as a phenomenon belonging to the universe, she left some dull walls on which the collection is exhibited to emphasize the continuity of the construction and its eternity. Even the name of the exhibition is constructed by forming the new word "Bağmana."

Pilevneli Gallery

Wandering around the rowhouses, I several times heard that people were quite eager to see Esra Gülmen's work. Her art aims to convey a message through a simple language that could be easily understood. She takes on human psychology and daily life struggles and converts them into something fun.

Her impactful sentences make you think first, then give way to a smile. The artist prefers to convey her messages through a blend of typography and illustration. Her touch on personal and societal notions through simplicity is what makes her remarkable.

Art for Goodness Association

To disseminate the art to the wider masses, the association strives to provide opportunities for new graduates of fine arts universities. This exhibition brought together the works of its artists who took part in "A Year in the Passage," "Impressions from Anatolia," "Atölye Cer" and Publicly Art.

The youth dynamism of the gallery offers a unique experience that allows the descriptions of the pieces to be heard through quick response (QR) codes. Thanks to Apollon Engine technology that converts images to sound through color, texture and mood analysis, the spectators will hear the voice of pieces, and I also had the chance to hear some of the distinct melodies.