The Nicosia municipal arts centre (Nimac) defended its decision on Monday to exhibit a work by Turkish Cypriot artist Emin Cizenel, who designed the north’s flag.

Nimac said Cizenel’s work A Lost Moment forms part of the state’s art collection, having been purchased around 2007, and has been displayed at previous exhibitions “without any issue arising”.

The centre stressed that the exhibition is a group show featuring 16 Cypriot and international artists and that the artwork had been loaned specifically for the exhibition.

The centre also reaffirmed its institutional independence, saying it enjoys “complete artistic freedom” and that exhibitions are not subject to approval by the municipality itself.

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It added that its board would examine the matter at an extraordinary meeting in light of the public debate.

The controversy stems from Cizenel’s widely recognised role as the designer of the flag adopted by the north in 1983, which has since been provocatively emblazoned upon the Pentadaktylos mountains.  

The participation of one of his works prompted objections from the Ecologists before the exhibition opened, with critics arguing that displaying his work in a municipal cultural institution carries political significance beyond artistic merit.

Speaking to Sigma, journalist George Tattis recounted that while present outside the exhibition during a peaceful protest staged by two artists holding banners opposing what they described as the “normalisation of occupation through art”.

He said he attempted to question the exhibition’s curator about Cizenel’s participation after she described him as “an exceptional artist” and rejected suggestions of censorship.

Tattis further alleged that while filming in a public place, a man accompanying the curator threw his mobile phone to the ground after he identified himself as a journalist.

Deputy Nicosia mayor Chrysanthos Fakas insisted that he had asked for the exhibition to be cancelled after learning of Cizenel’s participation.

He said that he had informed Mayor Charalambos Prountzos and members of the municipal council and requested that the information surrounding the artist be verified before the exhibition proceeded.

Fakas argued that the issue was “not one of censorship” but concerned the use of a taxpayer funded municipal space.

He acknowledged, however, that Nimac operates under its own board and that the municipal council is not ordinarily involved in approving exhibitions.

Mayor Prountzos distanced the municipality from the exhibition, stating he had no prior knowledge of the exhibition, did not attend its opening and that the municipal council does not approve works displayed in museums or arts centres.

Cizenel, originally from the village of Malia in Limassol, studied painting at the Istanbul Academy of Fine Arts before continuing his education in Vienna.

The artist has also participated in bicommunal cultural initiatives.

He served on the Technical Committee on Culture, which facilitated the return of around 200 artworks from the north to their original artists, and has publicly argued that Cyprus’ cultural heritage should be protected regardless of which community it belongs to.

He has also spoken of Turkish Cypriot identity as distinct from that of Turkish settlers and has criticised Ankara’s treatment of Turkish Cypriots.