Istanbul’s cultural landscape is set for a significant leadership change as Yeşim Gürer Oymak prepares to become General Director of the Istanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts (İKSV) on 1 July 2026. The appointment marks a new chapter for one of Turkey’s most influential cultural institutions, which oversees major international festivals and year-round arts programming.
Gürer Oymak has served as Deputy Director General of İKSV since September 2017 and previously led the Istanbul Music Festival from 2006 to 2018. She will succeed Görgün Taner, who has held the role since 2002 and will transition to Chair of the İKSV Executive Board as part of the governance shift.
A leadership transition rooted in experience
For travellers who plan their visits around festivals, exhibitions and performances, İKSV plays a defining role in shaping Istanbul’s cultural calendar. The foundation is behind flagship events such as the Istanbul Music Festival, Istanbul Jazz Festival and Istanbul Biennial, helping position the city as a crossroads of global creativity and local heritage.
Gürer Oymak brings more than 2 decades of institutional knowledge to the role. Her academic background spans English Language and Literature, piano performance and advanced studies in musicology, with degrees from Boğaziçi University, Istanbul University State Conservatory and Mimar Sinan University State Conservatory. Between 1996 and 2016, she taught at Istanbul University State Conservatory, where she also chaired the Department of Musicology and served on the executive board of the Ottoman Music Application and Research Centre.
Her career bridges education, cultural programming and international collaboration. As the founding director of the İş Sanat Cultural Centre, she developed year-round artistic programming before moving on to lead the Istanbul Music Festival. She also coordinated the classical music programme in France during the Cultural Season of Turkey in France between 2009 and 2010, a project jointly organised by the Turkish and French Ministries of Foreign Affairs.
Reacting to her appointment, Gürer Oymak said Yeşim Gürer Oymak, General Director Appointee, “It is a great honour for me to assume this important role at the Istanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts (İKSV), of which I have been a proud member for twenty years. I take on this position with great pleasure and excitement and, together with my colleagues, look forward to shaping the next chapter of the Foundation’s long-standing contribution to culture and the arts.”
Outgoing General Director Görgün Taner, who has been part of İKSV since 1983 and previously directed the Istanbul Jazz Festival, welcomed the transition. “I am delighted and proud that my valued colleague Yeşim Gürer Oymak, with whom I have worked closely for many years, has been appointed General Director of the Istanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts (İKSV). It is a great source of pride for us all that a dedicated and visionary cultural leader, with deep roots in the Foundation and extensive experience across different artistic disciplines, will be guiding İKSV into its next chapter,” said Görgün Taner, General Director, Istanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts.
For international visitors, Istanbul’s arts scene often shapes travel decisions just as much as its historic mosques, waterfront cafés and bustling bazaars. Festivals curated by İKSV attract global audiences, bringing orchestras, filmmakers, visual artists and emerging voices into venues across the city. Leadership continuity paired with fresh direction can influence everything from programming diversity to international partnerships.
Gürer Oymak’s background suggests a strong emphasis on music, cross-border collaboration and institutional stability. Her recognition by foreign ministries underscores this global outlook. In 2014, she received the Bene Merito medal from Poland’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs for strengthening Polish–Turkish cultural relations. In 2019, France awarded her the Chevalier dans l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres for expanding cultural cooperation between France and Turkey and broadening access to classical music.
Those international connections matter for a city that serves as a gateway between continents. Cultural programming increasingly shapes destination branding, influencing how travellers perceive a city before they arrive and how long they stay once there. Strong leadership at a cultural institution can ripple into tourism flows, seasonal demand and the diversity of audiences a city attracts.
The governance shift also introduces continuity at board level. The Executive Board will continue its work under the İKSV Board of Directors chaired by Bülent Eczacıbaşı, with members Prof. Dr. Teoman Akünal, Zeynep Hamedi and Görgün Taner. This structure aims to balance long-term institutional memory with strategic renewal as the foundation navigates changing audience expectations and evolving cultural funding landscapes.
Gürer Oymak also continues her role as Co-Director of the Leyla Gencer Voice Competition, maintaining close ties to emerging talent and international networks. For visitors drawn to Istanbul’s performance calendar, this suggests continued emphasis on artistic quality alongside broader accessibility.
As 2026 approaches, the transition signals stability rather than disruption, while opening space for new interpretations of Istanbul’s cultural identity. For travellers planning future trips, the leadership change offers a glimpse into how the city’s arts scene may evolve — blending tradition with contemporary voices, deep local roots with outward-looking ambition, and education with public engagement.
About Yeşim Gürer Oymak
Yeşim Gürer Oymak studied at Saint-Benoît French High School before earning a Bachelor of Arts degree in English Language and Literature from Boğaziçi University, alongside a degree from the Piano Department of Istanbul University State Conservatory. She holds a master’s degree in Musicology from Mimar Sinan University State Conservatory and a doctorate in the same discipline from Istanbul University State Conservatory.
Between 1996 and 2016, Gürer Oymak was a faculty member and Assistant Professor at Istanbul University State Conservatory. During this period, she also chaired the Department of Musicology and was a member of the executive board of Ottoman Music Application and Research Centre – OMAR.
She became the Founding Director of the İş Sanat Cultural Centre, where she developed the institution’s year-round artistic programming until 2006. She then served as Director of the Istanbul Music Festival from 2006 to 2018. Between 2009 and 2010, she coordinated the classical music programme in France as part of the Cultural Season of Turkey in France, jointly organised by the Turkish and French Ministries of Foreign Affairs.
In recognition of her contributions to Polish–Turkish cultural relations, she was awarded the Bene Merito medal by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Poland in 2014. In 2019, she was awarded the Chevalier dans l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the French Ministry of Culture for her role in strengthening cultural cooperation between France and Turkey in the fields of music and the arts, and in bringing classical music to wider audiences.
Yeşim Gürer Oymak has served as Deputy Director General of İKSV since 2017 and is also Co-Director of the Leyla Gencer Voice Competition.
