# Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University

Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University (Turkish: Mimar Sinan Güzel Sanatlar Üniversitesi, or MSGSÜ) is a public art university in Istanbul, Turkey. The university's campus is located in the Fındıklı, Beyoğlu. The university was established in 1882 under the leadership of Osman Hamdi Bey.

## History

On January 1, 1882, the Ottoman Turkish painter, art historian, archaeologist, and museum curator Osman Hamdi Bey established the Imperial College of Fine Arts (Turkish: Sanayi-i Nefise Mekteb-i Âlisi, formally Mekteb-i Sanayi-i Nefise-i Şâhâne or Sanayi-i Nefise Mektebi), modeled after the Beaux-Arts de Paris. When it opened on March 2, 1883 with eight instructors and 20 students, the college was the Ottoman Empire's first educational institution for fine arts and architecture.
In 1914, the school became co-educational. In 1928, it was converted from a school to an academy, the first in Turkey, and its name was changed to the State Academy of the Fine Arts (Turkish: Devlet Güzel Sanatlar Akademisi). In 1969, it was renamed as the Istanbul State Academy of Fine Arts (Turkish: İstanbul Devlet Güzel Sanatlar Akademisi, or İDGSA), and gained administrative autonomy according to Law No. 1172 on Fine Arts Academies in Turkey.
On July 20, 1982, its status was changed again, and the academy became Mimar Sinan University (Turkish: Mimar Sinan Üniversitesi) in memory of the Ottoman chief-architect Mimar Sinan. Finally, in December 2003, the administration of the university changed its name to the Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University. Since 1982, the institution has been providing four-year educational programmes.

## Building

The buildings that house what is now the Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University were initially constructed in 1856 as the twin palaces of Münire Sultan and Cemile Sultan, the daughters of Sultan Abdülmecid. They subsequently housed the meetings of the Chamber of Deputies of the Ottoman Empire between 1910 and 1920.

## Basic Design Education Division

Following the Academy Reform and a student occupation in 1968, Basic Design Education (Turkish: Temel Sanat Eğitimi) was incorporated into the curriculum in 1969. The Basic Design Education Division was critical of the master-apprentice model and aimed to blur the distinction between handicrafts and fine arts. The co-founders of this division included Altan Gürman, Ercümend Kalmık, Ali Teoman Germaner, Erkal Güngören, Özer Kabaş, and Nuri Temizsoylu, who wanted to create a Bauhaus-inspired model to enable consistency and continuity in the education that first-year students received. This model aimed at encouraging students to explore, question and analyse different techniques, tools, and materials related to arts and design.
Following the 1980 coup d'état in Turkey, the administration and autonomy of universities changed, and Basic Design Education was removed from the curriculum in 1982. The Mimar Sinan Fine Arts High Schools in Istanbul and Ankara have no relation with Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University.

## Organisation

* Faculty of Fine Arts: Photography, Traditional Turkish Handicrafts, Graphic Design, Sculpture, Painting, Stage Design and Stage Clothes, Ceramics Art and Glass Art, Cinema and TV, Textile Design and Fashion Design, Bookbinding, Tilework Restoration, Calligraphy, Rug and Old Textile Design, Restoration and Conservation of Art Works (Painting and Sculpture)
* Faculty of Architecture: Architecture, Urban Planning and Regional Planning, Industrial Design, Interior Architecture
* Istanbul State Conservatory: Music, Musicology, Performing Arts
* Vocational School: Textile Design, Architectural Restoration
* Faculty of Natural Sciences and Literature: Archeology, Pedagogy, Physics, Statistics, Mathematics, History of Art, Sociology, History, Turkish Literature
* Institute of Natural Sciences
* Institute of Social Sciences
* Institute of Fine Arts
* School of Informatics

## Notable people
### Notable faculty

* Osman Hamdi Bey — Painter, art historian and archaeologist
* Alexander Vallaury — French architect
* Salvatore Valeri — Italian painter
* Yervant Osgan — Ottoman Armenian sculptor
* İbrahim Çallı — Painter
* Filiz Ali — Pianist and musicologist
* Rudolf Belling — German sculptor
* Nuri Bilge Ceylan — Film director, screenwriter and photographer
* Adnan Coker — Painter
* Bedri Rahmi Eyüboğlu — Painter and poet
* Nazmi Ziya Güran — Painter
* Giulio Mongeri — Italian Levantine architect
* Vedat Tek — Turkish architect
* Bruno Taut — German architect
* Sedad Hakkı Eldem — Turkish architect
* Robert Vorhoelzer — German architect and city planner
* Ali Teoman Germaner — Sculptor
* Neşe Aybey — Miniaturist
* Hüseyin Tahirzade Behzat — Miniaturist

### Notable alumni

* Emre Arolat — Architect and professor
* Okan Bayülgen — Actor and TV personality
* Hande Erçel — Actress and model
* Nazlı Deniz Kuruoğlu — Ballet dancer and Miss Turkey 1982
* Tuba Büyüküstün — Actress and model
* Halit Ergenç — Actor
* Nejat İşler — Actor
* Sarp Akkaya — Actor
* Maide Arel — Armenian-Turkish painter, graduated in 1935
* Akbar Behkalam — German-Iranian painter and sculptor
* Sinem Banna — Turkish-American sculptor
* Adnan Coker — Painter
* Nevin Çokay — Painter
* Nazmi Ziya Güran — Painter
* Nur Koçak — Artist
* Maya Kulenovic — Canadian painter (student from 1992 to 1995)
* Elif Naci — Painter
* Erinç Seymen — Turkish artist
* Tiraje Dikmen — Turkish painter
* Emel Cimcoz — Turkish painter and First lady of Turkey (1973-1980)
* Burak Bilgili — Opera singer
* Yonca Evcimik — Pop singer
* Kutluğ Ataman — Film director
* Pınar Selek — Sociologist and human rights activist
* Galip Tekin — Comic book artist