SSEDD CONFERENCE FOCUSES ON ASLANTEPE CULTURAL HERITAGE
The 7th Ceramic Art Education Conference of the Ceramic Art Education and Change Association (SSEDD) was held at the Malatya İnönü University Faculty of Fine Arts and Design, hosted by the Dean's Office and the Ceramics Department. While panels addressed current issues guiding ceramic art education, the exhibition and workshops focused on the Arslantepe theme, contributing to cultural memory.
The 7th Ceramics Art Education Conference, supported by the Malatya Provincial Directorate of Culture and Tourism, Battalgazi Municipality, and Malatya City Council, was held between September 28-30. The conference, which included panels, workshops, exhibitions, and cultural tours, addressed and discussed the topic of "Ceramics Departments in the Academic Process and Employment Opportunities" with expert academics.
Organized by SSEDD, the conference featured two separate sessions, four separate workshops, and two separate exhibition openings. Attendees included İnönü University Rector Prof. Dr. Nusret Akpolat, Dean of the Faculty of Fine Arts and Design Prof. Dr. Yüksel Göğebakan, SSEDD Board members, academics from ceramics departments of various universities, and students.
The first day of the event began with the opening of the ‘Our Cultural Heritage Arslantepe’ SSEDD Members National Juried Ceramics Exhibition and the FFAD Ceramics Departments 2025-2026 Graduation Projects Exhibition. Following the opening speeches by Rector Prof. Dr. Akpolat, Dean Prof. Dr. Göğebakan, and SSEDD Board President Prof. Zehra Çobanlı, a musical performance was given featuring the section titled ‘Sacrifice’ from the work composed for Arslantepe by Assoc. Dr. Mehmet Güneş Açıkgöz, Head of the Music Department of the Faculty of Fine Arts at İnönü University.
The first session, chaired by Prof. Dr. Yüksel Göğebakan, featured a panel titled “The Place of Ceramic Art Education and Archaeology.” Arslantepe Excavation Head Prof. Dr. Francesca Balossi Restelli (Sapienza University of Rome, Italy), Prof. Dr. İsmail Aytaç (Department of Fine Arts Education, Fırat University), and Prof. Hasan Başkırkan (Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University) and Dr. Canan Güneş (Dumlupınar University) contributed to the panel.
On the second day of the event, a panel titled "Ceramics Departments in the Academic Process and Employment Opportunities" was held in the second session, moderated by Prof. Zehra Çobanlı and primarily featuring contributions from heads of ceramics departments. The panel focused on sharing up-to-date information and discussing all aspects of the pedagogical training program recently added to the curricula of ceramics departments. Prof. Safiye Başar (Kocaeli University), Prof. Seyhan Yılmaz (Kastamonu University), Assoc. Prof. Halil Fazıl Ercan (İnönü University), Assoc. Prof. Leyla Kubat (Bilecik Şeyh Edebali University), Assoc. Prof. Dr. Betül Aytepe Serinsu (Nevşehir Hacı Bektaş Veli University), and Assoc. Prof. Betül Demir Güneşdoğdu (Muğla Sıtkı Koçman University) attended the panel. Issues related to updating course programs, new digital technologies, and the compatibility of course names and content with other institutions offering the same education were also addressed.
The workshops products will become a memorial wall
The three-day workshops featured invited artists who work with different techniques and are experts in their fields; the artists shared their production techniques with the audience. In the workshop titled "Reproduction of Arslantepe Stamps with New Styles and Their Depiction with Colored Slip," led by Prof. Zehra Çobanlı and Assoc. Prof. Leyla Kubat, along with the host university's Ceramics Department Lecturers Dr. Tahsin Bozdağ and Emine Bekişoğlu, various slip decorations were applied. Experimental productions were carried out on "Roll Seal Applications with Wheel Shaping" with Dr. Lecturer Canan Güneş, Prof. H. Serdar Mutlu, and Dr. Lecturer Pınar Biçici. Dr. Elif Gündüz, Dr. Eda Demir Tosunoğlu, and Lecturer Bedriye Gözgör conducted practical sessions on "Underglaze Drawing of Arslantepe Patterns." Prof. Hasan Başkırkan, along with Assoc. Prof. H. Fazıl Ercan, Research Assistant Soner Şanlı, and Research Assistant Dr. Yavuz Deniz, led a workshop on "Raku/Sagar Firing Applications."
The workshop was attended by students from the Ceramics Department of the Faculty of Fine Arts and Design at İnönü University, as well as ceramics students from universities in surrounding provinces and students from various departments within Fine Arts faculties. The works produced at the workshop will be assembled in a modular way after firing and displayed as a memorial wall within İnönü University.
Arslantepe: The Cradle of Civilizations
The last day of the event also included cultural excursions. As part of the excursions, participants visited the Arslantepe excavation site and excavation house under the guidance of the Head of Excavations, Prof. Dr. Francesca Balossi Restelli, and UNESCO Coordinator Archaeologist Cem Kaya. They also visited important cultural and artistic centers in Malatya, such as the Malatya Archaeology Museum, the Malatya City Museum, the Culture and Art Center, and the Camera Museum, which is the third largest of its kind in the world.
This year, the 7th SSEDD Ceramic Art Education Conference, held in Malatya, addressed current issues in panels that shaped ceramic art education, while exhibitions and workshops focused on the Arslantepe theme, fostering cultural interaction, raising awareness, and reinterpreting through interdisciplinary practices, thus contributing to cultural memory. Founded in 2013, the association's educational activities, which have already taken place in Bilecik, Çanakkale, Bolu, İzmir, Antalya, Kütahya, and most recently Malatya, will continue to contribute to ceramic art education within ceramic departments in various cities.
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