Team
Mine Erdemoğlu graduated from Hacettepe University with a degree in German Language & Literature and Educational Sciences in 1988. She taught German for 15 years and served as a high school deputy principal for 5 years. In 2014, she founded ME‑Nova Development, Education and Consultancy Company to continue her work in the field of education. Since 24 April 2015, she has held senior roles within the Maher Group — founded by her husband Mahmut Erdemoğlu — including Vice Chairperson of the Board of Maher Holding, Vice Chairperson of Quick Sigorta Board, Chairperson of Menova Board, Chairperson of Quick Art Space Board, and Managing Director of Maher Investition GmbH. She oversees the group’s education, culture and art initiatives.
Ahmet Yaşar graduated from Gazi University with a degree in International Economics. After working in journalism and publishing, in 1989 he moved into the insurance, finance and risk‑management fields and held leadership positions at leading Turkish insurance companies. Since 2015, he has served as President of the Maher Holding Insurance Group (comprising Quick Sigorta, Corpus Sigorta and Quick Hayat Sigorta). He also plays an active role in strategic management of other group companies such as Quick Finansman, QPAY Electronic Money & Payment Services, QCAR Mobility, MHR Real Estate, QC Construction and Valde Technology. In addition, he serves as Vice Chairperson of the Board at the Insurance Association of Turkey, Chair of the Non‑Life Management Committee, Vice Chairperson of the Insurance Arbitration Commission, and Board Member of the Insurance Practitioners Association. He maintains a comprehensive ephemera collection consisting of print media, local newspapers, periodicals, insurance documents and policies.
Team
Nergis Abıyeva (1991) continues her PhD studies in Art History at Istanbul Technical University. Upon the completion of her undergraduate studies at Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University (MSGSU), Department of Art History and Brera Academy in Milan, Abıyeva received her Master’s degree with her thesis titled “Tiraje Dikmen’s Art and Life” from MSGSU Western Art and Contemporary Art. In 2017, she received a SALT Research Grant for her research on “Tiraje Dikmen in the Context of Painters Who Travelled to Paris in the 1950s”. Between 2015 and 2017, Abıyeva worked as the archive manager for Maçka Art Gallery’s 40th Anniversary projects, contributing to archive exhibitions as well. Between 2017 and 2020, she worked as a researcher at a private collection and at Arter. In 2022, Abıyeva penned a monography titled Çağdaş Resmin Dervişi [The Dervish of Contemporary Painting] on the life and work of artist Murat Sinkil. Her exhibition/book reviews and interviews have been published in Turkish and English in periodicals such as Sanat Dünyamız, Varlık, PRŌTOCOLLUM, Genç Sanat Dergisi, Istanbul Art News, Birikim, Argonotlar, Art Unlimited, Global Art Daily since 2015. She wrote about Tiraje Dikmen and Mihri Rasim for AWARE platform. Among the group exhibitions she curated are “Mental Imaginary Things not Actually Present[1] ” (Summart, 2022), “Another Atlas of Women Artists[2] ” (Tophane-i Amire Culture and Art Centre, 2022), “Extraordinary Equivalences, Subtle Similarities[3] ” (Mixer, 2021). In 2023, she curated Gülçin Aksoy’s “Medal of Compassion” (Merdiven Art Space) and Benal Dikmen’s solo exhibitions “Trojan Women” and “Helen’s Double Life” (Troy Museum, Manfred Osman Library). In the same year, she wrote the catalogue texts for Clemens Wolf’s “REMIX-Material Archeology” at Sanatorium and Ekin Saçlıoğlu’s “Fragmented” at artSümer. She also teaches Art Marketing at Yıldız Technical University. In summer 2023, she received a scholarship from Salzburg Academy and participated in the workshop “Taking a position: Art & Writing” organized by Jennifer Higgie.
Büşra Bakkalbaşı graduated in 2022 from Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University, Department of Conservation and Restoration of Artworks. She focused on the preservation of cultural heritage and the longevity of artworks. She worked on conservation and restoration tasks on different materials within historic interiors and various museum collections, and contributed to the implementation of projects. She also gained experience in artist assistance and collection management. In May 2025 she joined the Quick Art Space team.
Advisory Board
Upon the completion of his bachelor’s degree in Performing Arts Management, he received his master's degree in Marketing Communication at Istanbul Bilgi University. Between 2010 and 2022, he worked at Istanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts, Doğuş Broadcasting Group and ATÖLYE in different fields such as communication, community and programming and project management. In 2015, he founded kultur.limited, an independent platform for professionals in the cultural sector. In mid-2022, Emre started freelancing and, in June 2023, founded Espas, a cultural management consultancy company. Emre teaches Marketing in Art at Yeditepe University and his articles on cultural management, cultural politics and popular culture are published in Calling, Cumhuriyet, Gazete Duvar, Istanbul Art News, GQ, T24, Vogue and Zero. Emre is a member of AICA Turkey (International Art[4] Critics Association) as an independent art writer since 2017.
She graduated from the Department of Ceramics Arts at the Faculty of Fine Arts of Anadolu University in 1998. Between 2008 and 2010, and studied in the Master's program of Museum Studies at the Faculty of Art and Design of Yıldız Technical University. She graduated in 2023 with her thesis titled 'Administrative Evaluation of Museology in Turkey in the Context of Museum Legislation' Over the fourteen years she worked in the field of museology, he specialized in museum management by working at Kocaeli City Culture Research and Development Center, Imre Thököly - Ilona Zrínyi Memorial House, SEKA Paper Industry Museum Research and Development Project, Istanbul Archaeology Museums as a museum researcher, Sait Faik Abasıyanık Museum, Darüşşafaka Museum, and Beşiktaş JK Museum. Cürgen Gültaş worked on various projects such as museums, science centers, and exhibitions, as well as in establishing and developing corporate memory. She presented papers at national and international seminars and symposiums in the field of museology. Her writings and interviews on cultural heritage preservation and the museum profession were published in platforms such as Artdog, Istanbul Art News, Archaeology and Art, and Medium. In 2024, Canan Cürgen Gültaş founded Terramemoria©, offering seminar, museum management, and consultancy services in museum and exhibition projects, focusing on the establishment and development of corporate memory.
Ömer Faruk Şerifoğlu studied at Istanbul University Faculty of Law and Anadolu University’s Department of Art History. He completed his master’s degree in Turkish Art at Marmara University with the thesis “Galatasaray Exhibitions 1916–1951 in the History of Turkish Painting.” Since 1987 he has worked in journalism and editing. In 1998 he became a founding member of the Sezer Tansuğ Art Foundation and served on its behalf to produce the journal ST Sanat Tarihi Araştırmaları. Between 1999‑2003 he worked at Yapı Kredi Publishing, where he edited numerous writers including Ferit Edgü, Fethi Naci and Memet Fuad, and served on the editorial board of Sanat Dünyamız magazine. He has edited many publications on Turkish art and culture.
She graduated from the Department of Sociology at Istanbul University in 2012. After working at various advertising agencies, she joined Artful Living first as an editor and later as editor-in-chief. Following her 7.5 years at Artful Living, she began working independently in the fields of editorial work and PR & media relations. Since 2020, she has continued her career as an independent communications consultant, editor, and writer. In 2024, she taught the course Press and Public Relations in Art and Cultural Management at Yeditepe University. She currently works on an ongoing basis in PR and media relations with Bor Sanat, Bursa Municipality, İMALAT-HANE, YUNT, and Decollage Art Space. Among the institutions and artists she has collaborated with on a project basis are Hitay Foundation, Vuslat Doğan Sabancı, Merdiven Art Space, Melek Zeynep Bulut, Studio Barbare, Cem Mumcu, Perasma, Nilüfer Municipality, Baksı Museum, Bayetav, Galeri Bu, Bilge Alkor, Serina Haratoka, Alican Leblebici, Eda Soylu, and Melis Buyruk. She also continues to write actively for many publications, ranging from Artful Living and Vogue to Oggusto and The Magger.