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.
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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.
