Development of contemporary art market in Turkey: 2001 Economic crisis and the sale of the Iktisat Bank collection

In this study, the process of development of the contemporary art market in Turkey is discussed. The formation of the art market has been evaluated within the historical and social context from the Ottoman Empire era to the present. The focus of the thesis is the sale of Iktisat Bank Art Collection after 2001 crisis and its impact to the development of the art market in Turkey. From the beginning of 1950s, the state's cultural and artistic activities in Turkey began to decline. The increase of the activities of the capital and companies in the field of culture took place in the 1970s. In parallel with the integration of the country into the global capitalist system after the 1980 coup, national and international activities in the field of art increased rapidly and the interest of the private sector in this field increased. The acquisition of Iktisat Bank Collection by the TMSF (Savings Deposit Insurance Fund) and the sale of this collection are important developments in this process. Art collection of Iktisat Bank, which is among the banks that went bankrupt after the 2001 economic crisis, was sold through auctions after long discussions on how to evaluate the works. In this study, the sale of the Iktisat Bank's Collection, considered in the context of increased activity by non-state actors in the period between 2001-2010. In addition, the historical economic-political analysis of the developments that prepare the increase of the efficiency of the capital in the field of culture and art constitutes the basic framework of the study.