The place of Mehmet Yusuf Akyurt’s ‘Tezyînî Resim Dersleri’ within illustrated art and architectural books of the late Ottoman–early republican period

Mehmet Yusuf Akyurt is a relatively little-known yet intellectually significant figure of the 19th century. He was described by Dr. Erdoğan Erol as “a second Osman Hamdi in the history of museology.” This article aims to introduce M. Yusuf Akyurt, the founding director of the Konya Âsâr-ı Atîka Museum, and to examine the place of his book Tezyînî Resim Dersleri within illustrated art and architectural publications of the Late Ottoman–Early Republican period. Akyurt’s educational background, teaching experience, and the educational system of technical schools of the period are evaluated to reveal his contributions to both artistic and technical education. Subsequently, within the context of the Ottoman Empire’s industrialization efforts in the 19th century, the study discusses the educational policies directed by the Meclis-i Umur-ı Nâfia and the transformation from reform schools (ıslahhaneler) to industrial schools (sanayi mektepleri), which shaped the educational environment of the time. The article further analyzes the content structure and pedagogical method of Tezyînî Resim Dersleri, which Akyurt prepared to address the deficiencies felt in technical drawing education under the conditions of the period. It is observed that the work presents an original contribution for its time and constitutes a systematic and practice-oriented instructional material that remains usable even today. Moreover, the book demonstrates an advanced approach within publications on Turkish art, surpassing the works of researchers such as Celal Esad Arseven and Ali Talat Bey through its use of scaled drawings. In this respect, the study aims to provide an evaluation of the history and literature of technical and fine arts education in the Late Ottoman–Early Republican period, while also presenting the contributions of M. Yusuf Akyurt’s work to this field.

Keywords: Decorative painting courses, industrial school, Mehmet Yusuf Akyurt, Ottoman educational policies.