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THE STORY OF THE FOUNDING OF ANTALYA WOMEN MUSEUM

It first began with the Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey (TOBB) Antalya Women Entrepreneurs Committee Executive Committee. At that time the Chairperson of the Executive Committee was Işık Yargın. In the Executive Board meeting dated 18.12.2013, it was decided to establish a women's museum in Antalya. Five Advisory Board meetings were held. In a workshop moderated by Prof. Dr. Nevzat Çevik on February 19, 2014 and attended by specialists a presentation on “International Women’s Museums and Antalya Women’s Museum Draft Proposal” was held.  On May 24, a well-attended conference call of the Antalya Women Entrepreneurs Committee was moderated by Prof. Dr. Çevik and the topic was discussed with a comprehensive panel of experts. In the Antalya Women Entrepreneurs Committee Executive Committee held on 21.08.2014 the assessment meeting on 07.07.2014 was reviewed. In that meeting the Department Head of Museology at Akdeniz University Prof. Dr. Nevzat Çevik conveyed as part of an 8-page report his suggestions on what needed to be done in the near future with regard to the Antalya Women Museum, that work on the virtual museum should start as soon as possible and for the establishment of an Antalya Women’s Festival with an international scope. Thoughts about the “International Antalya Women’s Festival” were exchanged in view of the report. The Women Entrepreneurs Committee, took this proposal to the ACCI board. Though this proposal was met with much enthusiasm it didn't come into realisation.
 
In a public meeting organised by the TOBB Antalya Women Entrepreneurs' and  the curator of the Women Museum Nevzat Çevik, and in another meeting arranged by the Antalya Women’s Association, conferences on “Women in World History” were held continuing to inform the public about women’s issues. At this stage, the responsibility of the organisation on behalf of the Committee was given to Yeliz Gül Ege.

The activities of the “Antalya International Women's Festival” were conducted together with Yeliz Gül Ege. This project was also discontinued when it was suspended by the ACCI. Initially accepting the Antalya Women Museum project, the ACCI Board declared that the project wasn’t feasible.

After that, on the recommendation of Yeliz Gül Ege the Women's Museum Project was espoused by ATAV (Antalya Promotion Foundation) President Nizamettin Şen. Under the roof of ATAV, the efforts for the Women’s Museum were reorganised and a new road map was drawn.

By the decision of the Board of ATAV (23.06.2015/222), a new Advisory Board was established with ATAV President Nizamettin Şen as Chairperson and Yeliz Güle Ege as Vice Chairperson. Prof. Dr. Nevzat Çevik accepted the post of Museum Curator. The Advisory Board consisting of Sibel Atasoy, Prof. Dr. Esma Durugönül, Melike Gül, İlkay Günal, Prof. Dr. Havva İşkan Işık, Serap Kocaoğlu, Semanur Kurt, Prof. Dr. Günseli Orhon, Feyza Özmen, Ebru Nalân Sülün and Işık Yargın held regular, periodic meetings rapidly accelerating the process and created the basic structure of the Antalya Women Museum. The first exhibitions that feature in the Virtual Museum, “Nomad Women's Clothes” and “Nomad Women's Jewellery” were realised by İlkay Günal and Huriye Beken and “Goddesses of Antalya“ by Prof. Dr. Nevzat Çevik. The first tangible activities were interviews. Interviews were conducted with 19 women from different fields, who serve as role models and were specifically chosen by the Advisory Board. These interviews are continuing.

These activities were done by the board members Atasoy, Çevik, Gül Ege, Gül, Özmen, Sülün, Şen and Yıldırım. The Board Secretariat, other office work and fieldwork organisation was carried out by museologist Senem Yıldırım. During the course of these works support from the following institutions and individuals was received: Antalya Collective Memory Centre, Antalya Girls’ Technical and Vocational School, Barut-Akra Hotels and Hasan Subaşı.

Under the umbrella of ATAV and in the process outlined above Phase I of the Antalya Women Museum was completed in a short period of 9 months with the launch of the virtual museum on November 23, 2015 and presented to the public and media.

The Virtual Museum will continue its development and become more active and enriched in the next stage. Phase II will progress on this path until the full realisation of a concrete museum.