[ATTRACTIVELY DESIGNED OPERA POSTER FOR VERDI’S OTHELLO CREATED BY MENGÜ ERTEL] Otello. Verdi. Opera, 4 perde. Devlet Opera ve Balesi, Istanbul Kültür Sarayi

Designed by ERTEL, MENGÜ (1931-2000).

Türkiye Cumhuriyeti Devlet Opera ve Balesi, San Grafik Matbaasi, [Istanbul], [c. 1969].

Original offset-lithograph. 82,5 x 55 cm. In Turkish. Printed on recto. Slight spotting on the verso’s right margins. Overall, a very good copy.

Uncommon and highly attractive opera poster for Giuseppe Verdi’s Otello, produced for the Turkish State Opera and Ballet and designed by the Turkish graphic artist Mengü Ertel (1931-2000). The design, reflecting clear affinities with the Polish School of poster art, dates from the period when Ertel was at the height of his creative productivity.

The opera in four acts was conducted by Hermann Hildebrandt (1910-1982), with stage direction by Aydın Gün (1917-2007) and set and costume design by Seza Altındağ (1921-2014). Otello is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi, set to an Italian libretto by Arrigo Boito, based on William Shakespeare’s play Othello. It was Verdi’s penultimate opera, first performed at the Teatro alla Scala in Milan on 5 February 1887.

Mengü Ertel was a Turkish graphic artist best known for the stage designs and posters he created for theatre productions. A graduate of the Istanbul State Academy of Fine Arts, he gained wide recognition for his innovative visual work in the performing arts. He also designed the poster for the first Istanbul Festival. He began producing posters in the 1960s, designing works for the private theatres of the period. In 1969, he organized the first exhibition devoted to theatre posters, which was later shown in Berlin, Warsaw, and Brussels. His works have been published in numerous international graphic design magazines, periodicals, and annuals, and his posters are held in the collections of the City Museums of Warsaw and Munich. In 1998, Ertel was awarded the title of State Artist by the Republic of Turkey. In addition to his artistic career, he hosted the weekly television program Cumhuriyete Kanat Gerenler until his death.