The beginning of July marked the 120th birth anniversary of the founder of modern Turkish caricature, Cemal Nadir Güler, who was commemorated for his oeuvre of drawings with a comprehensive exhibition organized by Küçükçekmece Municipality, one of Istanbul's small suburbs.

The exhibition offered the linear traces of his lifeline, his transformations and the quest of Güler through the presentation of the first cartoon he drew to his last. Brought to life via the exhibition, the vivid comical characters of Cemal Nadir, who took greatly contributed to the development of Turkish caricature, left an indelible mark on those who followed him.

As someone who had the opportunity to visit this exhibition, I was deeply impressed by Güler's timeless, subtle and absurd sense of comedy. Even though he drew his pieces around the 1920s and '30s, his messages are directed toward today's zeitgeist, including his illustrations of famous male figures ranging from politicians to writers in different professions, the creation of stock characters basing their surnames and his reputed "Amcabey."

The illustrations of the famous male bureaucrats of the period in different professions, creating sketches according to their surnames and the unforgettable "Amcabey" character, one of Turkey's first recurring comic characters, once more prove how his groundbreaking style is crucial, even today.

The exhibition that included unpublished and unknown photographs was supervised by researcher and writer Deniz Dalkılınç, also the owner of the Cemal Nadir Güler Archive Collection. For the first time, the visual documentation of Güler's meeting with Nazım Hikmet, the legendary Turkish poet, in the Bursa exhibition is presented to art goers. Thanks to the pleasant conversation that we had with Dalkılınç, I wanted to take a moment to detail Güler's rare life in depth.

Güler was born on July 13, 1902, to a poor family in Bursa. His mother, Nuriye Hanım, who was an immigrant from Bulgaria, was a housewife, and Şevket Bey, a native of Bursa, was an officer who worked as a calligrapher at the court.

He started to draw, an interest he had since a young age, by creating wall drawings with coal he found in the neighborhood. At that time, he used to draw the "bully" stereotypes in the neighborhood on the wall, and he would often be scolded by those who liken the characters to themselves.

His family tried to discourage him from investing time in art. However, he found encouragement for his talent after enrolling in a high school in Bilecik. With the support of his art teacher, he began to devote more time to drawing.

Although his family persuaded him to work in jobs that required physical labor, he quickly fell ill due to his lack of physical strength. Nadir's interest in the cartoon world never ceased. He constantly lived with the dream of becoming a painter. Being a cartoonist was an area in which he started to earn his living. He didn't even think about being called a cartoonist. For that reason, it made him happy that he would stay at home after he got sick and he could draw more. His overflowing desire for painting was so great that he spent his nights at home working under the dim light of an olive oil lamp.

He sent his cartoons to some magazines in Istanbul, and his first cartoon was published in 1920 in the humor magazine called "Diken." In the cartoon, a man asks a bookseller which one of his books helps children fall asleep the fastest.

Seeing his cartoon in a magazine for the first time intensified Güler's desire to draw. Yet, he had to defer his dreams. Bursa was occupied by the Greeks on July 8, 1920, and his father Şevket Güler was fired. During that time, he tried to make a living as a sign maker. On Sept. 11, 1922, with the end of the Greek occupation, he went to Istanbul with the hope of working in newspapers and magazines. He rented a small house with his wife.

The anecdote of him going to a job interview reveals how poorness was affecting him. While he was drawing women for "Papağan" magazine, he was criticized for not completing the lines. Later, Cemal Nadir would confess to Va-Nu, a famous journalist of that time: "You didn't pay attention. The day I came to the journal, I did not have socks on my feet. I painted my toe with china ink so that it wouldn't show as if my shoe had a hole."

He spent the most troubled and most depressing period of his life in Istanbul, shuttling between the doors of newspapers and magazines. He lost his first child in his arms due to neglect brought by financial insufficiency. He put his dead baby on the mat and had to prepare the next day's cartoon. After experiencing unsurmountable pain and realizing that he can't make a living in Istanbul, he buried all his hope and went back to his family home.

1928 was a year of significant changes in Güler's life. And with the Alphabet Reform announced that year, he started to gain a little more financial comfort. It is because signs of schools, government offices, and commercial establishments would be recreated with new letters.

Güler was a pioneering cartoonist. The most important feature that made him a pioneer was the stereotypes that he created. He published a cartoon every day in the evening newspaper, and his drawings of the people's needs, the problems of the people, and the criticism of mayors or monopoly managers were on his agenda while he also specifically referred to a current event that happened the day before. The most famous typecasting of Güler, who initiated a new cartoon drawing style, was his "Amcabey."

He published his first "Amcabey" on the third page of the newspaper Akşam in 1929. "Amcabey," who made people laugh with his snappy answers, yet stayed away from mundaneness, was a classy and affectionate character. It reflected not only the ridiculous aspects of life but also the saddest elements with his wit. He had a calm disposition, a type that never spoiled his joy. His temperament offers practical solutions for almost all the problems encountered by himself or his acquaintances. He liked to talk but was not talkative.

"Amcabey" with his bowler hat, butterfly glasses, bow tie, red coat and umbrella that he never leaves behind, was a folk philosopher who struck the right note. "Amcabey" reflected the ordinariness of Sharlo's clothes. Nadir created an absurd juxtaposition by using a small umbrella to make his imposing image look absurd.

As in his other cartoons, Güler shared his concerns through "Amcabey" who touched on the problems faced by the public.

"Amcabey" is such a commoner, and he was so loved by the people that he almost came to be seen as a real person. Some fans sent letters to the newspaper for the "Amcabey," who does not have a winter coat. Dress "Amcabey" in a coat so that he does not catch a cold, they often wrote. Güler thought that many readers who loved "Amcabey" knew Nadir through "Amcabey."

In the early 1930s, Güler, influenced by Walt Disney, tried to create a cartoon called "Amcabey on the Beach." However, seeing the impossibility of creating many visuals he gave up.

Güler, who participated in five cartoon exhibitions throughout his life, opened his first exhibition in Bursa, the city where he was born. Among the exhibitors, there was another person, the mastermind of poetry, Nazım Hikmet. The photograph, which was also included in the exhibition, pictured the only free day of Nazım Hikmet in Bursa.

He frequently dealt with all the evils of the war in his drawings, which he published during the World War II years. He also criticized the monopolies that became rich thanks to the war. He frequently used symbols and words in his criticism. Although the messages he wanted to give were blended with humor, they were crystal clear.

He illustrated poems, made oil paintings, drew book covers... He was a highly skilled technician in every field of drawing. After 1928, he made at least two cartoons every day in a short life span of 45 years. In addition, there were tons of drawings that did not include his signature, and pictures he made for his close friends.

One of the cartoons that caught my attention in the exhibition was the drawing that won an award in the Vienna painting competition. The place is Istanbul, the weather is 35 degrees Celsius. Fifteen people took shelter under a leafless tree with a thin trunk. "Oh," they say "at least we feel cool today." If I didn't know that this cartoon was drawn by Güler, I would think it was a cartoon drawn in the 2000s.

Cemal Nadir spent his last two days in a coma due to blood poisoning that could be solved with a simple antibiotic today. However, he left behind a great legacy in Turkish caricature that will never be forgotten.