Zeki Müren Art Museum

Our after-lunch stroll in Bodrum’s shopping district ended up being much longer than anticipated. And all because the first person from whom we sought directions to our next stop said it was just a couple hundred meters away. Hah! Turns out that it was more like a 1.5 miles each way. No big deal … except it was hot, humid, sticky … way too uncomfortable to walk that distance with very little shade along the way.

Zeki Müren … a Turkish singer, songwriter, poet, and actor … considered an “Artist of the State” due to his contributions to the music and art industry … the “Liberace of Turkey.” Over-the-top flamboyant in the later years of his career, he had a voice that everyone in Turkey would agree was one of a kind. Though he never commented on his sexual orientation, it is generally accepted that he was gay. That he continued to be loved and respected as a performer at a time when being gay would have been heavily frowned upon speaks to the quality of his art.

I fondly remember the many live performances we attended at the annual İzmir International Fair when I was growing up in the 60s and 70s. So, I was looking forward to visiting the house-turned-museum where he lived out the last six years of his life here in Bodrum. Unfortunately, it did not live up to my expectations. Not because it was a simple house with simple furnishings. I knew he had lived a quiet, understated life post-retirement … away from prying eyes. Rather it was the caliber — or lack thereof — of the exhibits that was disappointing.

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