TCF Launches 2011 Turkey Program for American Teachers

TCF agreed to fund a new agreement with WACA to continue the program that brings Turkey to American educators around the nation. The 3-part program, which includes a teachers workshop on Turkey, a  TCF-sponsored and organized Teachers' Study Tour to Turkey and public programming on Turkish culture, called "Portraits of Turkey" now enters its fifth year. In 2010, TCF sponsored workshops organized by participating chapters of WACA nationwide, reached 501 teachers with a student impact of over 40,000. Teachers who participated in the 2010 Study Tours have been sharing their experiences with the media, spreading the word about Turkey in their communities.

Local World Affairs Councils can apply to WACA until December 2, 2010 to be eligible for the TCF grant and participate in this year-long program. To inquire more about this program and how you can be part of it, please contact Bonnie Joy Kaslan at bonnie@turkishculture.org.


TCF Sponsors Turkish Festival

TCF provided a grant to support Turkish-American participation at the 2010 Indy International Festival, taking place this weekend. Turkey will be represented by the American Turkish Association of Indiana at the Festival.


TCF Underwrites Turkish Radio Hour

TCF has provided a grant to Turkish Radio Hour based in San Francisco and broadcasting on San Francisco community radio (KUSF FM 90.3) every Saturday. Produced by a volunteer Turkish American team, the program features information on Turkey, Turkish culture and art, business and scientific interests. It can be listened to live online and from its archives


TCF Istanbul Office Hosts Boston Museum of Fine Arts

The TCF Istanbul office hosted a group of distinguished patrons of the Bostum Museum of Fine Arts. The group received a lecture by Prof.Dr.Nurhan Atasoy, TCF Senior Scholar in Residence, on "Life in Istanbul: 1582." TCF also arranged a special visit to the Harem at Topkapi Palace for the group, led by Dr. Atasoy, and hosted a bosphorus tour with Prof.Murat Belge who briefed the guests on the history of and architectural heritage along the Bosphorus.


George Washington University Students Visit TCF Istanbul

The TCF Istanbul office hosted a group of George Washington University students and faculty members who were visiting Turkey on a week-long study tour and course. The group received a lecture by Prof.Dr.Nurhan Atasoy on "Ottoman Art and Culture in the 16th Century."


TCF Istanbul Office Hosts Native American Delegation

A Native American delegation of tribal leaders, who were invited to Turkey on a trip organized by the Turkish Coalition of America, visited the TCF Istanbul office and received a lecture on "Turkish Tents" by Prof.Dr. Nurhan Atasoy.


Hali Magazine to Feature Vakiflar Museums and DATU

A journalistic team from the Hali magazine, a British publication on textiles and rugs, visited TCF Istanbul and the TCF Natural Dye Research and Development Laboratory (DATU). The Hali team was visiting Turkey on a TCF-sponsored tour of the Vakiflar Museums in Tokat, Kastamonu, Ankara, Konya and Istanbul and will be writing about their visit in upcoming issues of the magazine.


TCF Istanbul Lecture Series

The TCF Istanbul Lectures featured Dr. Evangelia Balta of the National Hellenic Research Foundation who spoke on "Beyond the Language Frontier: Studies on the Karamanlis and the Karamanlidika Printing." A lecture on "Dervish Belts" was deliverd by Prof.Dr.Serife Atlihan of Marmara University, Faculty of Fine Arts. The Istanbul lecture program,  as well as videos of past lectures, can be viewed online at the TCF website.


TCF Turkish Art and Culture Lecturers Tour the US

TCF Turkish Art and Culture Lecture Series featured two renowned experts on Turkish history, culture and art. Mesut Ilgim, an expert on Turkish-Jewish history and the Turkish educational system, spoke in Chicago, New York and Detroit on the "Educational Contributions of German-Jewish Professors in Turkey;" Serif Yenen, a specialist on travel to Turkey and author of "Turkish Odyssey," spoke at the Smithsonian Institute's Fellows Program on Topkapi Palace: The Luxe Life, Sultan Style," as well as in New York, Philadelphia and Boston. The lectures are organized in collaboration with the American Turkish Society, Turkish American Cultural Alliance of Chicago, Turkish American Cultural Association of Michigan, University of Pennsylvania Museum and Boston University. Nearly 900 people attended the lectures.


TCF at SOFA Chicago
The TCF booth at the Sculpture Objects and Functional Art-SOFA Chicago exposition on November 5-7 featured the works of Yasemin Aslan Bakiri, Gamze Araz Eskinazi & Yasemin Sayinsoy, Yucel Kale and Seckin Pirim. The Turkish artists' participation at SOFA was widely covered in the press.

Florida - Hollywood
Date: Nov.20, 2010 10:00 am - 9:00 pm
Festival: "The 9th Annual Turkish Festival" by FTAA
Information: www.floridaturkishfestival.org
Supported by a major grant from the Turkish Cultural Foundation.


New York - Ithaca
Date: Nov.19-21, 2010
Festival:"Recent Turkish Cinema" by Cornell Cinema, Turkish Student Association at Cornell and Moon and Stars Project
Information: cinema.cornell.edu/series_LateFall2010/turkish_cinema.html
Supported by a major grant from the Turkish Cultural Foundation.


Indiana - Indianapolis
Date: Nov. 18-21, 2010
Festival: 2010 Indy International Festival, Turkish events
Information: www.ata-in.org/events/indy_fest.html
Supported by a grant from the Turkish Cultural Foundation.


Massachusetts - Boston
Date: Dec.02, 2010 6:00 pm
Lecture: "Flavors of Anatolia" with Ana Sortun and Ihsan Gurdal
Information: www.bostonturkishfestival.org
Supported by a major grant from the Turkish Cultural Foundation.


Massachusetts - Boston
Date: Dec.03-07, 2010
Competition: Documentary and Short Film Competition
Information: www.bostonturkishfestival.org
Supported by a major grant from the Turkish Cultural Foundation.


New York - New York
Date: Dec.03-12, 2010
Festival: The 12th Annual New York Turkish Film Festival
Information: www.newyorkturkishfilmfestival.com
Supported by a major grant from the Turkish Cultural Foundation.


Massachusetts - Boston
Date: Dec.08, 2010 8:00 pm
Concert: Taxim Square
Information: www.bostonturkishfestival.org/
Supported by a major grant from the Turkish Cultural Foundation.


Turkey - Istanbul
Date: Jan.11, 2011 2:30 pm
Lecture: "From Prousa to Bursa: the Making of the First Ottoman Capital" by Asst. Prof. Dr. Suna Cagaptay, Bahcesehir University, Faculty of Architecture and Design, TCF Fellow
Information: www.turkishculturalfoundation.org/pages.php?ID=60

For a listing of Turkish cultural events around the world, visit the TCF Calendar.