Refia Övüç Maturation Institute
Changes After Construction:
- The historic building, whose original construction date and architect are unknown, was purchased by the Directorate of Education in 1945.
- In 1995, a pattern museum was opened within the institution.
- It took its present form after a comprehensive restoration process carried out between 2014 and 2019.
Prominent Features:
- The institution, which was the first maturation institute opened in Türkiye, is also known as Beyoğlu Maturation Institute.
- In 1993, the institute was given the name of its founder Refia Övüç and officially became Refia Övüç Maturation Institute.
- The purpose of the school’s establishment was to create job opportunities for Muslim girls in the fashion sector, which in the 1940s was a field dominated in Türkiye by non-Muslim minorities, and to accustom them to commercial life.
- Lale Belkıs, who graduated from the sewing course of this school, became known through the institution’s fashion shows and was accepted as Türkiye’s first international model.
