30.04.2025 12:11
The Minister of Culture and Tourism, Mehmet Nuri Ersoy, announced that Turkey's targets for 2025 are 65 million tourists and 64 billion dollars in tourism revenue. The revenue of 9.5 billion dollars obtained in the first quarter of this year was recorded as the highest figure for a quarter.
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Minister of Culture and Tourism Mehmet Nuri Ersoy stated, "Turkey achieved its highest revenue in the first quarter with 9.5 billion dollars. We expect 65 million tourists and 64 billion dollars in tourism revenue by 2025." Minister Ersoy announced the tourism data for the first quarter of 2025. He mentioned that the 9.5 billion dollars in tourism revenue obtained in the first quarter is the highest figure in the first quarters.
"OUR 2025 TARGET IS 65 MILLION VISITORS"
Minister Ersoy said, "The 2025 target is 65 million visitors and 64 billion dollars in revenue. We anticipate a 4.4% increase in the number of visitors and a 4.7% increase in revenues compared to last year. Turkey was 8th in visitor rankings in 2017, and it rose to 4th place last year." Minister Ersoy noted that the number of tourists, which was 4.8 million in the same period of 2017, increased to 9.1 million in 2024, but this year it slightly decreased to 8.9 million. Regarding the reasons for this decline, Ersoy stated, "The fact that February has 28 days caused a 3.5% drop, and the coincidence of Ramadan with March led to a reservation decline of up to 20% in some regions."
"PER CAPITA NIGHTLY INCOME REACHED 116 DOLLARS"
Sharing information about the average per capita nightly income, Ersoy stated, "The per capita nightly income, which was 75 dollars in 2017, has risen to 116 dollars in the first quarter of this year. The increase in the number of quality tourists has played a significant role in this rise. The average length of stay also exceeded expectations. While a contraction of 3.5% was anticipated in the first quarter of 2025, only a 1% decrease was experienced," he expressed.
"THE OUTLOOK FOR RESERVATIONS IS POSITIVE"
Pointing out that there is a positive outlook for reservations, Ersoy said, "Reservations are coming in above the year-end average. April started very well and is expected to finish with a 6% growth." Minister Ersoy stated, "Last year, Russia was first with 6.71 million visitors, Germany second with 6.62 million, the United Kingdom third with 4.43 million, Iran fourth with 3.28 million, and Bulgaria was in 5th place."
EXHIBITIONS OF WORLD-FAMOUS PAINTERS
This year, we are featuring exhibitions of world-famous painters in our festival. In this context, Salvador Dali will meet art lovers at the Atatürk Cultural Center with his exhibition 'Masterpieces of Surrealism', while Henri Matisse will present 'Towards the Simplification of Line and Drawing'. In addition to these names, Marc Chagall will be in Ankara, Joan Miró in Izmir, René Magritte in Antalya, and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, Edgar Degas, and Auguste Rodin will be in Nevşehir and Diyarbakır. Furthermore, Pablo Picasso, who we hosted in Istanbul, Ankara, Izmir, and Antalya in 2024, will meet art lovers in 7 cities in Anatolia (Adana, Bursa, Van, Kayseri, Gaziantep, Mardin, and Diyarbakır) this year.
Salvador Dali (1904-1989): The Spanish painter Dali, who is the most important representative of Surrealism in the world, completed his most famous painting, "The Persistence of Memory," in 1931, which is the most recognized of all Surrealist paintings.
Henri Matisse (1869-1954): The French painter Matisse is a pioneer of the Fauvism movement. Matisse's artistic understanding is based on the independent and powerful use of color and form.
Marc Chagall (1887-1985): A French painter of Russian descent, Chagall is one of the important representatives of Surrealism. He is also known for his works in engraving, mosaic, and stained glass.
Joan Miró (1893-1983): The Spanish painter and sculptor Joan Miró is also known for his lithographic works on zinc plates.
René Magritte (1898-1967): Considered one of the most important representatives of the Surrealism movement, the Belgian painter's works, which deal with dreamlike themes, are a mixture of comedy, horror, strangeness, or intrigue. He also did advertising illustrations for a period.
Edgar Degas (1834-1917): The French painter, sculptor, and draftsman Degas is considered one of the founders of the Impressionism movement, although he stated that he preferred to be recognized as a realist rather than using this term.
Auguste Rodin (1840-1917): Known as the pioneer of the modern sculpture movement in the world, the French sculptor Rodin is also the creator of the world-famous sculpture 'The Thinker'.
Pablo Picasso (1881-1973): The Spanish painter, sculptor, stage designer, poet, and playwright Picasso is one of the best-known names in 20th-century art in the movements of Cubism and Surrealism.
STEVE MCCURRY
American photographer and photojournalist Steve McCurry, who became world-famous with the cover photo 'Afghan Girl: Sharbat Gula' in the June 1985 issue of National Geographic Magazine, will be featured in our festival this year. McCurry will hold the world premiere of his exhibition titled "The Haunted Eye" in Istanbul.
BOLSHOI THEATRE OPERA AND BALLET
The Bolshoi Theatre Opera and Ballet, a world-renowned symbol of Russian performing arts and one of the oldest art institutions in the world, will stage the world-famous ballet performances of Swan Lake and Romeo and Juliet at the Atatürk Cultural Center in Istanbul as part of the Turkey Culture Road Festival.
EXHIBITION OF THE FIVE WONDERS OF THE ŞAKİR PASHA FAMILY
Five great artists emerging from a family that spans from the Ottoman Empire to the Republic, Fahrelnissa Zeid, Aliye Berger, Nejad Melih Devrim, Füreyya Koral, and Cevat Şakir Kabaağaçlı, will meet for the first time in the same exhibition.
The exhibition "Five Wonders of the Şakir Pasha Family" offers a journey into Turkey's art and thought history not only with their works but also with letters, photographs, and documents taken from the family archive.
OPENING OF BEDRI RAHMI EYÜBOĞLU'S MUSEUM HOUSE TO VISITORS
The museum house of Bedri Rahmi Eyüboğlu, a pioneering artist, writer, and poet who left a mark on Anatolia with his art, designed by architect Turgut Cansever in Kalamış, will be opened to the public with a special visit on the 50th anniversary of his death. This special visit, which will only be held as part of the Turkey Culture Road Festival, will showcase many works and memories belonging to the artist.
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The project invites you to explore the inspiring artistic journey of the artist.
TRACE AND MEMORY: BALKAN NACİ İSLİMYELİ EXHIBITION
The works of Balkan Naci İslimyeli, one of the leading names in contemporary art, meet art lovers in the capital with a wide collection after a long hiatus. The exhibition, which will take place at the Mustafa Ayaz Museum, offers a journey into the artist's world woven with thought and art.
HERITAGE GORDION EXHIBITION
This exhibition brings together important representatives of Turkish contemporary art, inviting the audience on a profound artistic journey through cultural memory, heritage, and timeless narratives. The exhibition will feature over 30 works ranging from painting to sculpture, ceramics to installations, and digital art to various contemporary techniques. The exhibition will take place at the Anatolian Civilizations Museum.
ANDREA VANZO
World-renowned composer and pianist Andrea Vanzo will perform in Istanbul at this year's Turkey Culture Road Festival.
TRAVELER
This work, titled Seyya, developed by artist Gökhan Doğan, is an AI-supported interactive digital art experience that invites the audience on a time journey starting from Göbeklitepe to the present day. Thanks to lidar and image processing technologies, the system perceives the audience and reimagines them as a figure who lived in past civilizations. The artificial intelligence analyzes the viewer's posture, movements, and presence to create a personalized experience.
JOURNEY TO THE ROOTS
The Journey to the Roots exhibition reinterprets the historical journey of Turkish painting art through the possibilities of digital art, emphasizing the transcendent power of art by combining traces of the past with contemporary technological expressions. Ten works selected from the inventory of the Ankara State Painting and Sculpture Museum were sent to ten digital artists, who transformed these works through moving images, AI visualizations, data processing techniques, and interactive narratives.
Exhibited Works:
Hoca Ali Rıza – Landscape
Adnan Çoker – Turkish Triangle
Abidin Dino – Untitled
Abdülmecid Efendi – Goethe in the Harem
Osman Hamdi Bey – Arms Dealer
Şeker Ahmet Ali Paşa – Landscape
Mustafa Ata – Composition
Cemal Tollu – Horses
Erol Akyavaş – Composition
Halil Dikmen – Orange Gatherers
FROM SKETCH TO PIXEL: ANATOLIAN EDITION
The From Sketch to Pixel Digital Art Exhibition has made significant contributions to the Turkish art ecosystem since 2022 through the combination of technology and art. The 27 exhibitions held brought together 188 artists, showcasing the power and impact of digital art to a wide audience. The exhibition, which created significant engagement on social media, attracted attention with 1.2 million views, 780 thousand likes, and 380 thousand comments. In 2024, 27 artists selected from 240 applications during the Open Call process strengthened the exhibition's impact on the global art scene. The event, which was followed with interest by a total of 239,048 visitors, aims to transform into a sustainable structure for 2025, targeting the participation of more artists. Since 2022, with its increasing interest and number of participants each year, From Sketch to Pixel showcases the evolution of digital art and the international visibility it has brought to artists in Turkey.