44. Today in 1920s Turkey: 31 December 1925 (Football Before Females)
English
Man: Oh… When will you be mine?
Woman: Maybe… tomorrow!
Man: Uh… Not tomorrow, there is a football match!Türkçe
Erkek: Ah… Ne zaman benim olacaksın?..
Kadın: Belki… yarın!
Erkek: Ah… Yarın olmaz, futbol maçı var!..
Comments:
As is the case in much of the world today, football (or for Americans, “soccer”) is by far the most popular national pastime in Turkey. This passion for football can be traced back to the early 20th century. Istanbul’s earliest football team was established in 1899 and by the 1920s it was a sport that newspapers regularly reported on and that many men found appealing to watch. Through its dialogue, this composition provides a humorous comparison between two of man’s most primal distractions or pursuits: women and competitive sporting events. When faced with the choice of how to spend his time “tomorrow” the man chooses football over an attractive woman who has already promised herself to him.
This image constitutes an early work by the artist, İhap Hulusi Görey (1898–1986), who later became known for his advertisement designs and posters, especially in the 1930s. The artist’s work is highly recognizable by its effortless and cool graphic style and by his signature which can be found in the lower right corner of the image. His signature changed in 1928 with the advent of alphabet reform but always maintained the triangle at its center. Here, the name “İhap Hulusi” is placed above the triangle and the location “Istanbul” is below it. He began his professional career in Istanbul in the second half of the 1920s submitting works to illustrated journals such as Akbaba and later Cem. Other examples of his work have been covered by Today in 1920s Turkey and can be found in the following posts:
#70 (His Master’s Voice Gramophones)
#129 (Youth Serum+Love=Warm Winters)
Originally published at https://steemit.com on December 31, 2018.
