Culture and Arts Awards of 2014 presented at Topkapı

ISTANBUL

Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu (center) poses with the award recipients and attendees of the ceremony. DHA Photo

The Presidential Culture and Art Grand Awards of 2014 were presented last night a ceremony held at the Topkapı Palace on Nov. 3.  

Speaking at the ceremony, Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu said actress Gönül Ülkü Özcan, elegy performer Celal Yılmaz, lyricist Beşir Ayvazoğlu and the Kubbealtı Academy Culture and Arts Foundation were chosen as this year’s recipients of the Culture and Art Grand Awards. 

“When we put four awards next to each other, they show us traces of the modern and the ancient,” said Davutoğlu, adding that the relation between modernity and globalization would never be lost. 

Unfortunately, Özcan could not attend the ceremony because of a health problem. Culture and Tourism Minister Yalçın Topçu and the State Theaters General Director Nejat Birecik visited Özcan on Nov. 4 at her house and presented the award on behalf of the prime minister. 

The awards are distributed by the state to Turkish and foreign artists and institutions that contribute and honor Turkish culture and art. The recipients of the awards are selected by a jury in accordance with the Culture and Tourism Ministry Awards regulations.