Billings Middle School students at Aphrodisias last Spring

In 2012, TCF awarded a grant to Billings Middle School in Seattle, WA to support a pilot year of teaching Turkish as a foreign language. The project was spearheaded by Rebecca Timson, Dean of Faculty of the school and an alumnus (2007) of the TCF Teacher Study Tours to Turkey.

After a succesful completion of the pilot year in which sixteen 8th grade students took the class or participated in conversation classes, the school decided to contiue offering Turkish in the 2013-14 academic year, in addition to Spanish. Currently, fourteen students are enrolled in the year-long class and more are anticipated to join for the conversational class next semester.

According to Ted Kalmus, Head of the School, "Turkish language has been a tremendous addition to the Billings Middle School program. It has broadened the scope of our Global Studies program in significant ways, building on a curriculum that emphasizes global case studies for understanding across disciplines." Selma Nadir, who teaches the class opined that Turkish went beyond a language course and became "a focus group for sharing Turkish culture with the rest of the school."

Sarah Pogson, one of the students who took the Turkish class in its pilot year said: "I was the first one to sign up, and I helped spread the word about why it was such a good idea to accept the challenge of trying something new. We learned so much about Turkish history and culture, which shifted our perspectives about Turkey and its role in the world. Indira Rampersad, one of the students in this year's class added: "Turkish is my favorite class this year, partly because I am interested in language and cultural studies. I am very excited about the possibility that I will go to Turkey this year and be able to speak with the people we meet. I've realized this year how important it is to learn more than one or two languages."

In 2010, TCF made a four-year commitment to support a full-time Lecturer position in Turkish Language and Literature at Stanford University in California. Burcu Karahan Richardson, the lecturer and a recipient of the TCF Fellowship in Turkish Culture and Art, will be offering language courses on Turkish Reading, Introductory Ottoman Turkish, and Advanced Turkish for Research. Wwo courses on Turkish culture, Contemporary Turkish Cinema and Society and Istanbul the Muse: The City in Literature and Film, will also be offered by Dr.Richardson in the 2013-14 academic year.

According to Prof.Richard Saller, Vernon R. & Lysbeth Warren Anderson Dean of the School of Humanities & Sciences ar Stanford University, "Stanford students, who have taken the lecturer's courses, have acquired valuable insights into the complex cultural, social and political dynamics that characterize our world today. Their knowledge of Turkish language and culture will provide unique advantages for their professional and personal aspirations after their graduation." Prof. Robert Crews, Director of the Mediterranean Studies Forum; Associate Professor of History, stated that "The Turkish Language & Literature Lectureship has helped our program's efforts to further enhance Ottoman and Turkish Studies at Stanford." "It is no longer unusual to run into a student browsing a Turkish copy of Ahmet Hamdi Tanpinar's Saatleri Ayarlama Enstitüsü or to overhear students conversing in Turkish about simit and pogaca," added Dr. Burcak Keskin-Kozat, Associate Director of the Mediterranean Studies Forum at Stanford. For more information on the courses offered, please visit the Stanford website.

In collaboration with the Turkish Cultural Foundation, Nicolaus Copernicus University in Torun, Association of Polish Architects SARP, and Asia and Pacific Museum in Warsaw, "The Second Conference of Islamic Art in Poland, Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth-Ottoman Empire: art & architecture-religions-societies" will be held in Warsaw, Poland by the Polish Institute of World Art Studies between September 15th and 17th, 2014. The conference is organized on the 600th Anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Poland and Turkey.

For more information, please click the information or visit the website of the conference: http://www.world-art.pl/n,12,15-17-09-2014-warszawa.html

To apply for the conference, please fill the registration form and send it to the e-mail address: polish_ottoman2014@yahoo.pl till May 31, 2014.

The Turkish Cultural Foundation is now accepting applications for its 2014 Cultural Exchange Fellowship.

Established in 2012, the TCF Cultural Exchange Fellowship aims to support international exchanges between artists, as well as professionals working in fields related to the arts and culture. The Fellowship is awarded competitively each year to Turkish and non-Turkish artists and professionals.

33 individuals have received this TCF fellowship since its inception in 2012 and participated in a wide range of cultural and artistic programs. Their observations and experiences are shared here.

This year, interested applicants may apply during two different terms.

The 2014 application deadline for the TCF Cultural Exchange Fellowship is December 2, 2013 for the first term fellowships and June 2, 2014 for the second term fellowships.

For more information on eligibility, terms and application forms, please visit the TCF website.

After a successful exhibition at the 20th Sculpture Objects and Functional Art - SOFA Chicago Fair earlier this month, Turkish contemporary art will now be on exhibit at the Hilton Asmus Contemporary Gallery in Chicago.

The show titled “Istanbul Breeze” will bring together Asli Kutluay, Aysegul Kirmizi, Camekan,  Derya Ozparlak, Dilek Aydincioglu, Dincer Gungorur, Meral Deger, Nadia Arditti, Pembe Hilal Tuzuner, Semra Ozumerzifon and Yasemin Aslan Bakiri who participated in the ARMAGGAN Art & Design Gallery-TCF exhibition at SOFA with Chicago-based and Istanbul born artists Meltem Aktas and Ani Afshar, as well as Turkish American artists Cetin Ates and Belgin Yucelen, who have participated in the TCF-ARMAGGAN exhibition at SOFA Chicago in 2012.

Featuring paintings, sculpture, glass, metal, ceramic, fiber art and mixed media, the exhibition will open on November 22 and remain on view through January 24, 2014.

For more information, please visit the Gallery’s website.

Prof. Dr. Recep Karadag, Senior Scholar at the TCF Cultural Heritage Preservation and Natural Dyes Laboratory - DATU, received the "Science Award" of Marmara University in Istanbul.

Awarded on the occasion of the 130th Academic Year of the University, Dr.Karadag received this academic achievement award for his contribution to science and education through his publication of 13 articles, 22 papers, 53 citations in 2011-2012 and for his internationally acclaimed work on natural dyes. For more information on the work of Dr.Karadag and the DATU team, please visit the DATU website.

Join the TCF Culinary Arts Center-YESAM tour to explore the culture of the olive fruit and olive oil in Turkey.

The Mediterranean basin, the cradle of human civilization, is known as the native land of the olive tree and inhabitants of this region long cherished olive oil and held the olive tree in high regard. For thousands of years, olive oil has been used to heal wounds, and the minerals and vitamins it contains are considered to be the essential elements of a nutritional diet.

The area extending from the south of the “Kaz” Mountains as far as Ayvalık, also known as the Northern Aegean region, is the production center of the most flavorful olive oil in Turkey.  Ayvalık and the area surrounding the “Kaz” Mountains are not only the center of the historical journey of olive oil, but are also home to a very distinct culinary culture.
As part of the mission of TCF-YESAM to preserve and revive the culinary traditions of Turkey, the tour will explore the historical journey of this golden liquid, participate in the harvesting of olives, observe the making of olive oil, and include olive oil tasting and the sampling of some of the most delicious food this region has to offer.

The tour, organized with support from NAR Gourmet, will be led by renowned food culture researcher and journalist Nedim Atilla.

For more information on the program, terms and conditions, please visit here. Please note that the primary language on the tour will be Turkish.

10 Turkish artists will be showcasing their work at the 20th Sculpture Objects and Functional Art - SOFA Chicago Fair on October 31 - November 3, 2013.  Asli Kutluay, Aysegul Kirmizi, Camekan, Derya Ozparlak, Dilek Aydincioglu, Dincer Gungorur, Meral Deger, Nadia Arditti, Pembe Hilal Tuzuner and Semra Ozumerzifon will be part of the ARMAGGAN Art & Design Gallery's exhibition at SOFA Chicago. Having presented the works of 32 Turkish contemporary artists at SOFA since 2007, TCF joined forces with the ARMAGGAN Art & Design Gallery in 2012. This year, ARMAGGAN became the lead sponsor and organizer of the Turkish art display at SOFA, as part of its vision to support and promote Turkish artists and designers. The SOFA fairs bring together groundbreaking modern artists, sculptors, designers, curators and collectors from around the world for a series of exhibits, lectures, and discussions and is visited by tens of thousands of art lovers every year. “The showcase of Turkish contemporary art at SOFA gives Turkish artists an opportunity to present their work to a discerning art audience," said Guler Koknar, TCF Executive Director."We are pleased that ARMAGGAN Art & Design Gallery is sharing our passion by taking the lead in this project and hope that this year's SOFA fair will open new horizons to the participating Turkish artists.”

We are pleased to share with you the Turkish Cultural Foundation's 2012 Annual Report, now available online, and the progress TCF has made in 2012.

'Mind-blowing,' 'life-changing,' 'enriching,' and simply 'amazing.' These were the responses from the 52 participants of TCF's 2013 Teacher Study Tour program when asked to describe their experience in just one word. For all of the teachers, who hail from 14 regions spanning from Hawaii to Vermont, this visit was their first to Turkey.

The change in the participating teachers’ pre- and post-trip sentiments confirms the value of this program. Prior to their arrival in Turkey, the teachers described their perceptions of the country as ‘unknown,’ ‘dangerous,’ ‘Muslim,’ ‘conservative,’ ‘underdeveloped,’ and ‘poor.’ After two weeks of experiencing Turkish culture and meeting with Turkish teachers, their perceptions of Turkey changed to ‘beautiful,’ ‘complex,’ ‘diverse,’ ‘modern,’ ‘friendly,’ ‘tolerant,’ ‘vibrant,’ and ‘welcoming.’

The teachers traveled some 2,000 miles across Turkey under the auspices of Spotlight on Turkey, a national educational program sponsored by TCF and organized in cooperation with the World Affairs Councils of America (WACA). The yearlong program aims to enhance teacher knowledge of Turkish culture and educate American teachers about the importance of cross-cultural global competency through in-depth, personal experiences. Once the teachers return, they are inspired to integrate their experience into their curricula and thus expose the students to first-hand knowledge of this critical region of the world.

Most importantly, all of the participating teachers left Turkey with a sense of excitement and eagerness to share their experiences with their students, families and communities.

The second group of 52 American middle and high school teachers departed Turkey Saturday (July 27) after embarking on the Turkish Cultural Foundation's Teacher Study Tours. The first group visited Turkey from June 28-July 11 and the second arrived on July 14. Four Turkish teachers accompanied the tours as volunteers to be a resource to American teachers for future educational exchanges.

Each group traveled some 3,200km (about 2,000 miles) altogether from Istanbul to Gelibolu (Gallipoli), Troy, Canakkale, Bursa, Kusadasi, Pamukkale, Konya, Catalhoyuk, Cappadocia and Ankara. Throughout the tour, teachers had the opportunity to experience first-hand world famous cultural, archaeological, architectural and natural sites of Turkey.

They also met with experts, educators and representatives of Turkish civil society.

The study tours are the second tier of Spotlight on Turkey, a national educational program organized by TCF, WACA and participating WACA chapters and funded by a major TCF grant. The program consists of three stages; Teacher Workshops on Turkey, Teacher Study Tours and Portrait of Turkey cultural events for students and the general public. Through this program, teachers enhance international learning for their students by integrating their gained knowledge at the workshops and on the study tours into their classroom. With the addition of this year's teachers, 477 American teachers have visited Turkey as part of this program. The teachers were selected from among participants in the Teacher Workshops on Turkey organized under the Spotlight on Turkey program, by 14 local chapters of the World Affairs Councils of America (WACA) and TCF.

To learn more about our teachers' journey, please visit the TCF Study Tour Blog. For Comments by former participants on the TCF Teacher Study Tours and a Trailer of "Broad Horizons," a documentary on the 2010 TCF Teacher Study Tours, please visit the TCF website. To order a free copy of Broad Horizons, please send an email to washington@turkishculture.org.

The first group of 54 American middle and high school teachers are leaving today to visit Turkey on the Turkish Cultural Foundation's Teacher Study Tours. The teachers were selected from among participants in the Teacher Workshops on Turkey organized under the Spotlight on Turkey program, by 14 local chapters of the World Affairs Councils of America (WACA) and TCF. The first group will be visiting Turkey on June 28-July 11 and the second group on July 14-27. Four Turkish teachers will accompany the tours as volunteers with a view to further facilitate exchanges between Turkish and American educators.

The teachers will begin their journey in Istanbul and visit Gelibolu (Gallipoli) and Troy, Canakkale, Bursa, Kusadasi, Pamukkale, Konya and Catalhoyuk, Cappadocia and Ankara. Throughout the tour, teachers will have the chance to visit and learn about world-famous cultural, archaeological, architectural and natural sites of Turkey and meet with experts, educators and representatives of Turkish civil society.

The study tours are the second tier of Spotlight on Turkey, a national educational program organized by TCF, WACA and participating WACA chapters and funded by a major TCF grant. The program consists of three stages; Teacher Workshops on Turkey, Teacher Study Tours and Portrait of Turkey cultural events for students and the general public. Through this program, teachers enhance international learning for their students by integrating their gained knowledge at the workshops and on the study tours into their classroom. With the addition of this year's teachers, 479 American teachers will have visited Turkey as part of this program.

You can follow the teachers' journey on the TCF Study Tour Blog. For Comments by former participants on the TCF Teacher Study Tours and a Trailer of "Broad Horizons," a documentary on the 2010 TCF Teacher Study Tours, please visit the TCF website. To order a free copy of Broad Horizons, please send an email to washington@turkishculture.org.

The Turkish Cultural Foundation (TCF) Fellowship in Turkish Culture and Art was launched in 2007 to support academic research, studies, and publications on Turkish culture and art with the goal to increase knowledge of Turkey's cultural heritage. As of 2013, 68 scholars have been awarded this TCF Fellowship, including 16 scholars who received the Fellowship this year.

TCF decided to conduct a comprehensive evaluation of this Fellowship program and therefore will not be offering the Fellowship in 2014.

Our evaluation will seek feedback from our past fellows, as well as from hundreds of scholars all around the world who formally recommended their students or fellow scholars for this fellowship. We hope that this reflection will help us to better assess the contributions that the TCF Fellowship program has made to increasing scholarship and publications in Turkish cultural studies and to raising public knowledge in this area. The evaluation will also help chart the future course of the TCF Fellowship Program. TCF also welcomes feedback about the program from all interested individuals and institutions.

The Turkish Cultural Foundation (TCF) is seeking Turkish teachers to work as volunteers on the TCF Teacher Study Tours this summer.

TCF has organized Teacher Study Tours since 2007 and hosted 425 American teachers in Turkey so far. The TCF Teacher Study Tours highlight the cultural, historical and artistic heritage of the country, while introducing the teachers to contemporary Turkey.

In order to facilitate exchanges between Turkish and American educators, the tours visit a variety of Turkish private and public schools. In order to take these educational exchanges one step further, last year, TCF began inviting a limited number of Turkish teachers to participate in these tours.

The 2013 study tours will take place on the following dates:

TOUR 1 : June 28 - July 11
TOUR 2:  July 14 - July 27

The TCF Teacher Study Tours will visit Istanbul, Canakkale, Bursa, Kusadasi, Pamukkale, Konya, Goreme and Ankara. Selected Turkish teachers must attend an orientation at the TCF Istanbul office and participate in one of the tours in full or in part. Costs for the selected Turkish teachers associated with participating in the Teacher Study Tours will be sponsored by TCF.

Interested teachers from are invited to submit their applications by filling out the Teacher Volunteer Form on the TCF website. For more information on past tours.

For more information, visit here.

The Turkish Cultural Foundation's (TCF)  "Who's Who in Turkish Culture and Art" online database reached 2,500 listings this week. The TCF Who's Who features living Turkish artists, artisans and experts in over 50 categories such as Visual, Traditional and Applied Arts, Conservation, Music, Dance, Fashion, Cinema and Theater. It was launched in 2008 and now is the most extensive online resource on Turkish culture professionals. Constantly updated, the database includes brief biographies and contact information for each individual, along with selected images of his or her work.

The TCF Who's Who aims to promote the artistic and cultural heritage of Turkey, while supporting the international reach of Turkish culture professionals. It is hosted on the TCF Culture Portal, which receives over 2 million visitors annually from across the world.

Individuals are selected for inclusion through a TCF managed process. We welcome nominations for listings directly via the Portal or by email to webmaster@turkishculture.org.

Isparta, Turkey : June 7-9, 2013

The Turkish Cultural Foundation’s Culinary Arts Center – YESAM (Yemek Sanatlari Merkezi) in Istanbul is pleased to present a cultural journey to the heart of the Rose.

The rose holds a unique place in Turkish history and art and has been a symbol of elegance, sanctity and love, and the subject of poems, hymns and enchanted tales. In addition, roses are cherished in Turkey for their fragrance, healing and cosmetic properties and their delicate taste. They are used in producing rose oil and rose water, as well as in confectionary, including lokum - Turkish delight.

Over the centuries, Isparta has become a center of rose oil and rose water production in Anatolia. This process began with Muftuzade Ismail Efendi, an Ottoman official stationed in Kizanlik (in today’s Bulgaria) in the late 19th century, who observed the cultivation of roses and rose oil production in the strictly guarded “Rose Valley” of the region. Ismail Efendi brought back a rose cutting to Isparta, planted it in his own garden and began growing roses. He later used a still to produce the first rose oil in Isparta in 1892. He became known by the cognomen “Gülcü” (rose grower). Ismail Efendi’s love of roses quickly spread, turning Isparta into the rose capital of Turkey.

YESAM invites you on a special cultural and culinary adventure to witness the rose harvest in Isparta and discover the beauty, fragrance and taste of the rose. The tour will be guided by Professor Ayten Altintas, faculty member of the Department of Medical History and Ethics at Cerrahpasa Medical School, who is a renowned expert on the medical and natural cosmetic properties of roses and their place in Ottoman medicine.

The tour has been postponed to has been a future date.

TCF is pleased to partner with Armaggan Art and Design Gallery to showcase Turkish contemporary art at the Sculpture Objects and Functional Art - SOFA Chicago fair on October 31 - November 3, 2013.
Having presented the works of 32 Turkish contemporary artists at SOFA since 2007, TCF joined forces in 2012 with Armaggan Art and Design Gallery, which provided pro-bono curatorial and logistical services to the TCF SOFA-Chicago exhibition.

This year, Armaggan Art and Design Gallery decided to participate in SOFA Chicago and sponsor the Turkish display at this leading art fair, as part of its vision to support and promote young Turkish artists and designers. TCF and Armaggan Gallery will also present a special tribute to the late Burhan Dogancay, as part of the SOFA Lecture Program.

Turkish artists who are interested in participating in SOFA Chicago are invited to send their applications to armaggangallery@gmail.com by May 16, 2013. For more information on how to apply, please visit the Gallery's website.

55 American middle and high school teachers have been selected to visit Turkey on the Turkish Cultural Foundation's Teacher Study Tours this summer. The teachers were selected from among participants in the Teacher Workshops on Turkey organized under the Spotlight on Turkey program, by 14 local chapters of the World Affairs Councils of America (WACA) and TCF. They will be visiting Turkey for two weeks on two study tours in June and July 2013.

The teachers will begin their journey in Istanbul and visit Gelibolu (Gallipoli) and Troy, Canakkale, Bursa, Kusadasi, Pamukkale, Konya and Catalhoyuk, Cappadocia and Ankara. Throughout the tour, teachers will have the chance to visit and learn about world-famous cultural, archaeological, architectural and natural sites of Turkey and meet with experts, educators and representatives of Turkish civil society. Since last year, volunteer Turkish teachers are accompanying the tours with a view to facilitate exchanges between Turkish and American educators.

The study tours are the second tier of Spotlight on Turkey, a national educational program organized by TCF, WACA and participating WACA chapters and funded by a major TCF grant. The program consists of three stages; Teacher Workshops on Turkey, Teacher Study Tours and Portrait of Turkey cultural events for students and the general public. Through this program, teachers enhance international learning for their students by integrating their gained knowledge at the workshops and on the study tours into their classroom. With the addition of this year's teachers, 480 American teachers will have visited Turkey as part of this program.

The Turkish Cultural Foundation sponsors research on subjects related to the art and culture of Turkey, and to studies related to the preservation of Turkey’s artistic and cultural heritage. The TCF Fellowship Program’s mission is to recognize and assist students and researchers whose scholastic achievements reflect the commitment of the Turkish Cultural Foundation to research, document, preserve and promote Turkey’s cultural heritage.

Fellowships are open to scholars who are engaged in the research phase of doctoral studies and for scholars whose Ph.D. or equivalent professional training has been completed within the past 10 years.

For more information, visit here.

The Turkish Cultural Foundation is pleased to announce the 13 recipients of the TCF 2013 Cultural Exchange Fellowship.

The TCF Cultural Exchange Fellowship Program was launched in 2012 to encourage cultural and artistic exchanges between Turkey and the world by supporting artists and art/culture professionals. The Fellowship has been awarded to 33 individuals to date.

For more information, visit here.

The Turkish Cultural Foundation will be offering 2 teacher study tours in 2013 on the following dates:

Tour 1: June 27 - July 11
Tour 2: July 13 - July 27

For more information, visit here.

The Turkish Cultural Foundation is seeking Turkish teachers to participate as volunteers on the TCF 2013 Teacher Study Tours with a view to facilitate educational exchanges between Turkish and American educators.

The TCF 2013 Teacher Study Tours will visit Istanbul, Canakkale, Bursa, Kusadasi, Pamukkale, Konya, Goreme and Ankara. The groups follow a program led by a professional tour guide that highlights the cultural and historical sites of the regions they visit. Selected Turkish teachers from these regions must be prepared to travel to Istanbul for an interview with TCF, and, if selected, participate in a one-day orientation program in Istanbul. Selected teachers will participate in the study tours, when the groups visit their city/region. TCF will sponsor travel to and one night stay in Istanbul for the teacher orientation program, as well as meals while accompanying the tours.

For more information, visit here.

Prof. Dr. Nurhan Atasoy, TCF Senior Scholar in Residence, gave a lecture on “Impressions of Ottoman Culture in Europe,” on September 17 to members of the European Parliament in Brussels, Belgium.

Organized under the auspices of the European Parliament’s Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe - ALDE Group and spearheaded by Metin Kazak, a member of the European Parliament from Bulgaria, the lecture was attended by nearly 80 parliamentarians. Dr. Atasoy’s conference was based on her book “Impressions of Ottoman Culture in Europe: 1453-1699” published by ARMAGGAN Publications in 2012. The book reveals the multi-faceted cultural influences of the Ottomans on Europe and is the culmination of a six-year research project, underwritten by TCF and conducted by Dr. Atasoy and her co-author Dr. Lale Uluc in 14 countries.