The "Culture and Literature Summit," organized in cooperation with the Faculty of Arts and Humanities and the National Values Society, was held with intense participation on Wednesday, May 20, 2026, at the Göztepe South Campus. Throughout the day-long events, academics, authors, artists, and students came together around culture, literature, poetry, and music. The sessions held in the Aşık Paşa Conference Hall and the Ömer Halisdemir Amphitheater attracted great interest from the students.
In the first session of the program, author Beşir Ayvazoğlu delivered his speech titled "Portrait, Witnessing, and History: Literary and Cultural Dimensions of Biography Writing." The talk was moderated by the Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Humanities, Prof. Dr. Ahmet Koçak. Ayvazoğlu stated that biography writing is not merely about telling a person's life story, but also reveals the cultural, political, and intellectual atmosphere of a period. Drawing on examples from Turkish literature and intellectual history, Ayvazoğlu highlighted the importance of witnessing and archival work in the study of biography.
In the second session, Istanbul University faculty member Prof. Dr. Mehmet Samsakçı took part as a speaker in the interview titled "City, Poetry, and Civilization: Yahya Kemal," which was moderated by Prof. Dr. Ahmet Koçak. In the session, Yahya Kemal's vision of Istanbul, his understanding of urban civilization, and his relationship with the classical poetry tradition were evaluated. In the program, which proceeded within the framework of questions directed by Prof. Dr. Ahmet Koçak, it was emphasized that history, aesthetics, and the concept of civilization are intertwined in Yahya Kemal's poems. The session, which attracted intense interest from students, concluded with a question-and-answer section.
The session titled "Universal Language: Music," held in the Ömer Halisdemir Amphitheater, became one of the most remarkable programs of the day. Ministry of Culture and Tourism artist Enes Ergür and the great master of the traditional kemençe, kemençe artist Derya Türkan, made evaluations on the unifying power of music in intercultural communication. The short kemençe recital performed by master artist Derya Türkan received great applause from the audience. In the talk, where the relationship between music and the human soul was touched upon, the place of traditional Turkish music in cultural memory was also discussed. At the end of the program, participants chatted with the artists and took souvenir photos.
In the speech titled "Can a Single Line Save the World?", another remarkable session of the day, Ayşegül Kızılaslan made evaluations on the impact of poetry on humans and the transformative power of literature. Touching upon the position of poetry in the modern world, Kızılaslan stated that a person's world of thought could change with a single line. In the program, which attracted intense interest from the participants, an intimate conversation environment was formed regarding the individual and social impacts of literature.
In the final session of the summit, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ramazan Arıtürk and author Dr. Ali Ural met with students in the interview titled "To Write or Not to Write, That is the Question!". Stating that the writing process requires discipline, attention, and intellectual accumulation, the speakers emphasized that literature is not only a form of expression but also an area of thinking and making sense. In the session where Ali Ural gave examples from his authorship experiences, students directed questions about writing practice and publishing.
Bringing the worlds of academia, art, and literature together under the same roof, the Culture and Literature Summit was completed with intense participation and interaction throughout the day. Throughout the event, students found the opportunity to chat one-on-one, meet, and exchange ideas with the speakers. During the signing and photo sessions held afterward, participants came together with authors and artists to take souvenir photos. The summit, which witnessed productive sharing on the axis of culture and literature, was met with great acclaim by the participants.
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