Izzet Elitas

Izzet Elitas was born in Zeytinburnu, Istanbul in 1966. He attended Semseddin Sami Elementary school. In 1981, he completed his memorization of the Quran from the Nuruosmaniye Quran Program. In 1982 he began his first tezhib course. He graduated from Fatih Imam Hatip high school in 1988 before moving to Cairo, where he studied Islamic Law at Al-Azhar University. In 1993, he returned to Istanbul where he taught at Zeytinburnu Imam Hatip high school from 1994-1998. From 1997-2019, Izzet served as an administrator for the Committee for the Dissemination of Knowledge and the Arabic Tour Division. In 2007, he received his ijazah in Thuluth-Nesikh from master calligrapher, Huseyin Kutlu as well as his ijazahs in Ta’liq, Diwani, and Jali Diwani scripts from master Ali Rıza Ozcan. He also took courses in Ebru from master Neyzen Sadreddin Ozcimi. In 2019, Izzet completed his master degree in calligraphy from the department of Fine Arts (Traditional) at Fatih Sultan Mehmet University. His thesis, ‘The Calligraphy of Cairo’s Menyel Qasr Masjid’ analyzes works by Ottoman calligraphers Abdullah Zuhdi, Aziz Rıfai, Hafız Osman, and especially Kamil Akdik whose works are well-known in Cairo’s architectural monuments, museums, and libraries.  He has led workshops and participated in individual and group exhibitions in Turkey, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Sudan, and Germany. In addition to giving courses in Turko-Islamic art and calligraphy at MEB and Istanbul University’s Faculty of Divinity, he also works as an artist in Istanbul. His works are part of many private in Turkey and worldwide.