Istanbul shops are brimming with exotic crafts, textiles, carpets, jewelry and more. The Grand Bazaar is the most renowned destination in the Imperial City. A maze of 61 covered streets, connecting over 4000 shops under a red tile rooftop. We have access to that red tile roof top if you would like to see where James Bond Hero, Daniel Craig, chased the henchman on a motorcycle in Sky Fall. The minarets of Nuruosmaniye Mosque scrape the sky, one can walk the entire roof line with a special pass.

Turkish souvenirs abound in the ancient market, a shopper’s paradise. One of the most unusual shops in the Bazaar is a tiny hard to find emporium owned by Nick Merdenyan. Nick’s is an obscure alley, a little treasure trove of intricate calligraphy – a particularly unusual form of calligraphy, as his craft is hand painted on dried leaves.

He calls his art form “Nick’s Missionary Leaves of Tolerance and Peace.” Since 1968, Nick has intricately painted traditional symbols and prayers of three Abrahamic religions – Judaism, Christianity and Islam – on dried leaves and has gained international recognition for his masterful skills.

His inspiration began when he received a potted plant for the baptism of his only son. As the plant shed its leaves, Merdenyan removed two of the leaves and preserved them between the pages of a book. Time passed, his son grew up, Nick opened the old book to discover the flattened leaves aged by time. From a dry leaf, it had transformed into a perfect, almost transparent silky canvas. Nick shared the leaf with a calligrapher friend. Captivated by the delicate yet sturdiness of the leaf, the two friends begin to experiment. The master calligrapher transcribed the Tughra – the signature of Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent – on one leaf and Yunus Emre’s epigram “Love who loves you” on the other with Kufic letters. The experiment, which was nothing more than a test, captured the attention of two American tourists visiting his shop. Wanting to buy the leaf, Nick Merdenyan sold his first work and began his life journey.

He began by investigating the type of plant and discovered it is a dieffenbachia from Denmark. He imported the leaves for many years until they stop exporting the leaves, at which point he turned to Florida. He uses two types of leaves: Dieffenbachia and Caladium. The leaves take approximately two years to transform into the perfect canvas. His vision and inspiration are derived from the three Abrahamic religions, Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. Nick painstakingly inscribes tender messages of peace, love, and unity on the delicate dry leaves. Some details are so intricate, he uses a cat hair brush under a magnifying glass. The deeply painted hues include a dynamic royal blue, a rich gold, deep red and an array of hues as vibrant a rainbow.

He has gained international recognition; acclaimed collectors include Laura Bush, Hillary Clinton, and Queen Letizia of Spain, and me!

Known as The Lord of the Leaves, a visit to this Armenian craftsman is worth seeking out in the labyrinth of Grand Bazaar shops. Our guides can arrange a visit.

https://atdaa.com/istanbul-dispatch-miniatures-and-calligraphy