The sixth volume of YILLIK: Annual of Istanbul Studies presents four peer-reviewed articles exploring Istanbul's historical, social, and cultural fabric. Günseli Gürel, winner of the Early Career Article Prize, reevaluates Ottoman narratives about Hagia Sophia from the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries.
Alaaddin Tok analyzes late Ottoman Istanbul's layered energy infrastructure, focusing on the concurrent use of wood, coal, and petroleum. Oğulcan Avcı and Nurcan Boşdurmaz reassess the history of the Fatih Sultan Mehmed Mosque near Anadoluhisarı, built by Sultan Mehmed II and later demolished during the early Republic, using archival materials to address gaps in the literature. Güzin Yeliz Kahya maps Istanbul’s creative industries and advocates for urban cultural policies that support clusters in both central and peripheral areas.
The Meclis section features the second installment of the Interventions to Istanbul Studies series, edited by Koray Durak, highlighting Istanbul’s Rum (Greek) community. Articles include Christine Philliou’s exploration of Valide Han’s forgotten history, Paul Magdalino’s study of Ilias Makridis’ unpublished memoir, Firuzan Melike Sümertaş’ analysis of the lost Rum Literary Society Syllogos, and Koray Durak’s discussion on Byzantine studies and Istanbul’s Greek-speaking community. Çiğdem Kafescioğlu examines the Rum community's post-conquest state, while Stefanos Yerasimos presents a map of Beyoğlu drawn by a Rum child, offering insights into spatial experiences.
In the Cabinet section, Özge Baykan Calafato analyzes photographs by Namık Görgüç and Selahattin Giz from the Suna and İnan Kıraç Foundation Photography Collection, exploring how photography reshaped representations of modern Turkish citizenship in early Republican Turkey.
The Reviews and Istanbul Bibliography section includes ten book reviews and two exhibition analyses. İpek Türeli reviews Istanbul as Far as the Eye Can See: Views across Five Centuries (Meşher) and On the Spot: Panoramic Gaze on Istanbul, a History (Pera Museum), focusing on the evolution of Istanbul’s panoramic depictions. The volume concludes with the Istanbul Bibliography 2024, compiling the latest research on the city.
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As part of the Chamber Talks programme by the Istanbul Research Institute, the talk titled The Cultivated Eye: From Arif Hikmet’s Lens to Architectural Practice brought together M. Baha Tanman and Müjde Dila Gümüş to examine Arif Hikmet Koyunoğlu’s photography archive and architectural work, offering new perspectives on the exhibition The Photography Studio of an Adventurous Architect.
Pera Museum is hosting guided tours for Feelings in Common, led by curator Ulya Soley. The Guided Exhibition Tour with Curator will take place at Pera Museum on December 24, 2025 at 18:00 and December 27, 2025 at 15:00. The tour will be conducted in Turkish. Capacity is limited; tickets are available via Biletix or at the Pera Museum reception desk on the day of the event.
At the 9th Major Community Gathering, the Suna’nın Kızları communities came together to review the past year’s outcomes and align on project plans for 2026. Participants explored new ideas and collaboration opportunities on how the model and programs co-developed with 33 civil society organizations over the past four years can further support and reinforce one another.