Gülbün Mesara is a renowned Turkish artist, author, researcher, and instructor, and the recipient of Turkey’s prestigious Presidential Culture and Art Grand Prize. She is widely recognized as one of the most eminent living artists and instructors of traditional Turkish arts.

Her artistic foundation was shaped by her father, Prof. Dr. A. Süheyl Ünver — a distinguished academician and physician at the University of Istanbul, where he founded the Institute of the History of Medicine. A world-renowned scholar, celebrated artist, and former visiting scholar at Columbia University, Prof. Ünver was deeply devoted to the history and arts of Türkiye. Widely regarded as the “Father of Turkish Artistic Design,” he played a pivotal role in codifying and preserving traditional Turkish illumination (tezhip) and miniature painting (minyatür), both of which were on the verge of disappearing after the First World War. His teachings on traditional Turkish illumination and miniature painting at his institute's workshop fostered a deeper understanding of Turkish art for generations of students, many of whom became prominent figures in the local and international art world.