Tüpraş will be Arter’s corporate sponsor for the coming 5 years

ARTER, a subsidiary of the Vehbi Koç Foundation (VKV), will open the doors of its new building in Dolapdere on Friday, September 13th with a multidisciplinary programme comprised of exhibitions, events, learning and film programme, and publications. Arter’s new building and opening exhibitions have been shared for the first time with the press on Wednesday, The press conference was held at Arter’s Sevgi Gönül Auditorium with Arter’s Founding Director Melih Fereli, the President of the Vehbi Koç Foundation, Erdal Yıldırım, and Arter’s Chief Curator Emre Baykal as speakers. In the message he delivered through Fereli, Koç Holding and Arter Chairman Ömer M. Koç has announced that Tüpraş will be Arter’s corporate sponsor for the coming 5 years. Within the framework of this long-term cooperation, visitors under 24 will be able to view all Arter exhibitions for free. The conference started with Fereli reading the message written by Ömer M. Koç, who has been unable to join the event due to last minute circumstances. In his message, Koç stated: “With Arter’s new building, we’re more than excited to have been able to create an environment where all audiences, especially children and youngsters, could encounter art in its various forms. Today, we are happy and proud to open this building that has been designed according to contemporary museum standards yet offers to its visitors more than what a museum has to offer, with a multidisciplinary programme including concerts, live performances, theatre, dance, film and learning. We need to equip our children with the ability to think creatively and to question the world around them while extending our entire population’s access and participation to the arts. To this end, I’m pleased to inform you that admissions to Arter exhibitions will be free of charge until 2 January 2020 for all. I also would like to announce that Tüpraş will extend its support to culture and arts by becoming Arter’s Corporate Sponsor for five years. Thanks to Tüpraş, admission to Arter exhibitions for visitors under 24 will always be free of charge.” President of the Vehbi Koç Foundation, Erdal Yıldırım made the following statements in his speech: “We are extremely happy, as well as proud to be able to establish a cultural institution that will contribute greatly to our country, our region and the world at large. Our happiness is doubled by the fact that the opening of Arter’s new building coincides with the 50th anniversary of our Foundation. We celebrate this special occasion with the motto ‘The Onus is On Us’. Our mission is not limited to bringing to life ‘centres of excellence’ such as Arter but also to make sure these institutions live long lives. Globally, it’s very rare for cultural institutions to stand on their own feet with the income they generate themselves; and this stands true for Arter as well. But in this case, we are fortunate, because we know that Arter’s long term sustainability is ensured by the support of Koç Family, the Koç Group and our Foundation.” Arter’s Founding Director Melih Fereli emphasized the following points: “While we open Arter at its new building, we undertake the mission of bringing together artists and audiences through celebration of today’s art in all its forms and disciplines. In this new building, we will strive be a sustainable, vibrant cultural hub, making our broad range of programmes accessible to everyone. With Arter, we wanted to create a meeting point for wider audiences to discover and explore various forms of art together. The most crucial aspect of this environment we intended to create is for younger generations to be able to grow in touch with the arts, asking new questions and experiencing creative production”. Arter’s Chief Curator Emre Baykal started his speech by underlining the experience gathered at Arter’s previous venue: “It was almost a decade ago that we went through a similar thrill at the opening of our first building on Istiklal Street. It was an exciting beginning for not only myself and the Arter team but also for all people interested in the arts. Our venue on Istiklal Street 211 has been a place for learning, preparation and gaining experience for all of us. Now, we are taking this experience and accumulation with us to this new space,