Burcu Çenberci has studied traditional Turkish art forms with a teacher in Ankara, Turkey, and continues to develop her own style.

Burcu says, “Art is experiencing a dialogue with nature and offering it back to your fellow humans."

Enriching life with art
by Maharishi International University, Fairfield, Iowa, USA, Achievements
27 December 2021

Maharishi International University (MIU) alumna Burcu Çenberci began studying art at age seven and learned the Transcendental Meditation technique at ten. She had two dreams growing up: to become a painter and to attend MIU.

Burcu studied landscape architecture at Ege University in Turkey and graduated at the top of her class in 1998. She then enrolled at MIU and earned an MA in art, specializing in sculpture. After graduating from MIU, she wanted to become a teacher of the Transcendental Meditation technique, and two years later she completed the training along with her mother.

For the next 12 years Burcu worked as a full-time TM teacher in Izmir and then Ankara, teaching courses and organizing events. She has also been taking courses in Maharishi AyurVeda and aromatherapy and sharing her knowledge with her students.

While at MIU, Burcu became interested in traditional Turkish visual art forms. She found a teacher in Ankara and began studying illumination, the art of decorating manuscripts with miniature paintings using natural pigments and gold.

For four years she honed her technique and patience in this meditative art form. While attending a course at MERU, Netherlands, in 2017, she became inspired to paint. Her first painting in a long time was a lush green landscape in miniature style, which surprised her.

“What interests me is the dynamic internal process I am going through while creating art,” she said. “You start with a plan but it evolves into something else. I am observing the process and discovering aspects of myself I wasn’t aware of.

Burcu continues to develop her style using miniature techniques and natural pigments made of earth, plants, and minerals, sometimes making her own paints. Her paintings feature landscapes of the Aegean coast, where she walks every day and carefully studies her surroundings.

“Art is experiencing a dialogue with nature and offering it back to your fellow humans,” she said.

In addition to being a painter, Burcu works as a part-time TM teacher and landscape architect.

You can find her art here.

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