Turkish presidency announces culture, art award winners

By Zafer Fatih Beyaz

ANKARA (AA) - Turkey announced on Monday this year's Presidential Culture and Arts Grand Awards, honoring the achievements of artists of the country.

The literature prize was awarded to Nuri Pakdil who died earlier this year, according to a statement by Directorate of Communications.

A Turkish pop-rock band MFO with Mazhar Alanson, Fuat Guner and Ozkan Ugur as members won the award for music for their representation of cultural identity.

Mesut Ucakan was awarded the cinema award for lifetime contributions in the field.

The painting award was given to Devrim Erbil for his works related to cultural traditions.

Fuat Basar was given the traditional art award for his work in calligraphy and marbling art.

The architecture award went to Dogan Kuban for his theoretical and conceptual studies on the history of Turkish architecture, restoration activities, and his views emphasizing the identity of Turkish works in Islamic architecture.

The award in the field of social sciences was given to Ahmet Yasar Ocak for his academic contributions to Islamic history and cultural historiography.

The loyalty award was given to former Deputy Minister of Culture and Tourism Ahmet Haluk Dursun who died in a traffic accident in August in eastern Turkey.

A ceremony will be held at the Presidential Complex on Dec. 19 to present the awards.