The TCF Istanbul office’s January lecture program featured Prof.Dr.Gul Irepoglu, Istanbul University. Organized under the TCF Lecture Series in Turkish Culture and Art, the January 16 lecture was titled “Osmanli Sarayi’nda Mucevher-Mucevher uzerinden Tarih okumak.”  
In February, the Lecture Series will host artist Gunseli Kato, who will present on the influence of Turkish art in Japan on February 6, and Prof.Dr.Sumer Atasoy of Karabuk University, whose February 7 lecture is titled “Tios: The Only Ancient City on the Turkish Black Sea Coast.”

The US leg of the TCF Lecture Series featured Dr.Recep Karadag, head of the TCF Natural Dyes Research and Development Laboratory-DATU, who gave a lecture at the Textile Museum in Washington, DC on January 17. His lecture titled "In the Sultan’s Studios: Recreating Ottoman Textiles," took place as part of the Museum’s ongoing exhibition on Ottoman textiles.

In January, the TCF Culinary Arts Center (Yemek Sanatlari Merkezi - YESAM) in Istanbul will host three lectures highlighting various aspects of Turkish cuisine.

On January 16, Nedim Atilla spoke on “Armenian Cuisine.” The lecture was followed by an Armenian cuisine dinner prepared by Nar Lokanta with more than 150 participants. Turkish white cheese will be the subject of a lecture by Artun Unsal on January 22. On January 31, Dr.Ozge Samanci of Yeditepe University will present on “19th Century Turkish Cuisine: Foods of the Palace and Street.” Unless otherwise noted, all YESAM lectures are presented in Turkish.

For more information on YESAM events and to watch videos of past lectures, please visit the YESAM website.

TCF has awarded a grant to the Eyup Musiki Vakfi (Eyup Music Foundation), one of the oldest Turkish musical societies in Istanbul. TCF has been a long-time supporter of Eyup Musiki Vakfi, which provides Turkish classical music training to under-advantaged children, as well as to adults. This year's TCF grant will underwrite a tribute concert to celebrate Amir Ates, a renowned composer of Turkish classical music. The concert will take place on January 26 at the Istanbul Technical University Macka campus. For more information and to reserve a seat, please contact 212-564- 2574.

A TCF grant to Billings Middle School in Seattle, WA will provide funding to institutionalize secondary level Turkish language education at the school. The project was spearheaded by Rebecca Timson, Dean of Faculty of the school and an alumnus (2007) of the TCF-World Affairs Councils of America (WACA) Educational Program, Spotlight on Turkey.

For the second year, TCF will provide funding to a Turkish American non-profit organization, Makam New York, to help underwrite the Second Annual Turkish Music Institute Workshop. The workshop will take place in New York on April 5-9 and brings practitioners of Turkish classical music to the US for five days of intensive training, culminating in a major concert.

Dr. Nurhan Atasoy, TCF Senior Scholar in Residence, has been a featured on “Tarihin Arka Odasi - History’s Back Room,” a highly popular history show hosted by Murat Bardakci and Erhan Afyoncu. Dr.Atasoy will continue to be a featured contributor on the show, which airs on Saturday nights on Haberturk TV, for the next several months.

The application deadline for the 2013 TCF Cultural Exchange Fellowship is February 15. Established in 2012, the TCF Cultural Exchange Fellowship aims to support international exchanges between artists, as well as professional working in fields related to the arts and culture. The Fellowship is awarded competitively each year to Turkish and non-Turkish artists and professionals. For more information on eligibility, terms and application forms, please visit the TCF website.