Mustafa Ayaz Müzesi

About Mustafa Ayaz Müzesi

The Mustafa Ayaz Museum (Mustafa Ayaz Müzesi ve Plastik Sanatlar Merkezi) is a private art museum on Ziyabey Caddesi in Balgat, Çankaya, founded by the painter Mustafa Ayaz, one of the leading names in contemporary Turkish painting. Born in 1938 in Çaykara, Trabzon, Ayaz taught at the Gazi Education Institute, Hacettepe University and Bilkent University before continuing his work in his own studio. Ayaz built the museum with his own resources. Construction began in October 2003 and finished in 2007, when the art gallery opened with an exhibition of his work; the foundation that runs it began operating in 2009. In his own words, his aim was not to build a museum but to give his works a safe home where they could live on permanently. The building has seven floors. The first, second and third floors show Ayaz's works from different periods, and part of the first floor is dedicated to his teacher, the painter and art historian Adnan Turani. Four studios host painting, sculpture and ceramics courses for adults and children and preparation for fine-arts faculties. On the ground floor are an art gallery showing work by Ayaz's students and changing exhibitions by other artists, a café, a gift shop and a library. The museum is open Tuesday to Sunday, 10:00-17:30, and closed on Mondays, during religious holidays and on 1 January. Its website lists a full ticket at 150 TL and a reduced ticket at 80 TL for students, teachers and visitors aged 65 and over; children aged six and under, press card holders and disabled visitors enter free.