MİMARLIK AGENDA

Democracy against Planning Corruptions / Mustafa Sönmez

The author highlights that the building investments of the state and the private sector has tripled from 2003 to 2013 and these investments constitute over % 80 of the state’s total investments. During the last 11 years, the building investments in private sector have reached an annual average of 35 billion dollars and the corruption mechanism have started to be witnessed from the stage of getting licences, to authorization. According to the author the only way the citizens can claim their city and themselves back, and prevent corruptions in the field of planning and construction depends on setting a real and direct democracy.

EVENTS

New Cycle of Turkish Architecture Awards: 2014 / 14th National Architecture Exhibition and Awards

Till today 1920 architectural works were participated among which 41 persons / organisations were awarded in various categories in the scope of the National Architecture Exhibition and Awards Programme, which is the first institutional initiative aiming to enhance architectural profession and culture in Turkey. The Evaluation Committee of 2014 consists of Nur Akın, Ferhat Hacıalibeyoğlu, Haydar Karabey, Ahmet Özgüner and Semra Teber Yener. Submission deadline is March 14th, 2014 and the awards ceremony of the exhibition is going to take place in Ankara on 11 April 2014 in METU Culture and Congress Centre.

“Rationalism of Baysal-Birsel: Architectural Practice in the Second Half of the 20th Century” Symposium

In the scope of the Commemoration Programme 2012-14 the Chamber of Architects has chosen to commemorate the architects, Haluk Baysal and Melih Birsel. Research on the life of architects is being conducted under the theme of the programme, “Rationalism of Baysal-Birsel: Architectural Practice in the Second Half of the 20th Century”. The symposium, which will be organised with the same title, is going to take place on 7th March 2014 in İstanbul, in Chamber of Architects İstanbul Metropolitan Branch building.

COMMEMORATION

Obituaries: HALUK ALATAN, PERRAN DOĞANCI, YALÇIN EMİROĞLU / Özcan Altaban, Hande Suher

In recent months we have lost three more names: Haluk Alatan, Perran Doğancı, Yalçın Emiroğlu…

Obituary of HALUK ALATAN, who has dedicated almost all his professional life to the planning of Ankara, worked in the team who have prepared “Ankara 1900” Metropolitan Area Master Plan and worked as the head of public planning bureau, written by his colleague from Ankara Metropolitan Area Master Planning  Bureau Özcan Altaban. One of our first female architects PERRAN DOĞANCI, from 1951 to 2000 actively worked as an architect, becoming one of the first female in the field of practicing professional architects. YALÇIN EMİROĞLU, who is one of the favourite names of ITU Department of Architecture, is known by his versatile personality, with a design portfolio raging from many known book covers, posters and patterns to theatre and opera stages, in addition to his academic career. We commemorate these two valuable names with obituaries, written by Perran Doğancı’s class-mate from ITU and the latter by Yalçın Emiroğlu’s instructor and later his partner Hande Suher.   

AGENDA

Integration of City and RuralAct: On Agriculture, Urbanization and Other Things / Ceren Gamze Yaşar

Integration Act, trying to integrate the rural areas with the city, while imposing city life on rural fabric, also suggests a new governmental regime. How will the metropolitan municipalities with expanded areas of service is going to fulfil their obligations is a major problem. The author evaluates on social, economic and spatial impact of the law and highlights the key points, where the urbanised rural areas will associate with the problems of the city.

2014 LOCAL GOVERNMENT ELECTIONS

Local Government Elections Symposium / Fikret Oğuz

Local Government Elections Symposium, organised in 23-24 January 2014 in İstanbul, provided a platform for the meeting of all parties who have actively participated in the process with academic society and for sharing theoretical and practical experiences and future visions with local executive candidates and citizens.

Chamber of Architects 2014 Local Elections Report

Reflections ofglobal, neo-liberal policies in our country, social claim for “freedom of speech” starting with the 27 May 2013 Taksim Gezi Park and spreading all the country, the rise of awareness towards the city and environment and this year’s Presidential elections affected 2014 local elections to be regarded as general elections, far exceeding the concept of being solely “local”. In this context, the Chamber of Architects has prepared “Policies, Evaluations and Suggestions towards 2014 Local Elections Report” to convey future concerns, policies and suggestions to political atmosphere of the country, local executive candidates and to public.

ARCHITECTURAL CRITICISM

The Murmur of the Site: Kâğıthane Offices / İdil Erkol

Cendere Valley is one of the regions of İstanbul Transforming at pace. Kağıthane Officepark designed by EAA and which has won an award in the “Building Category” of 2012 National Architecture Awards, is among the generator projects within the area. The author, who evaluates on the efforts of the building in adaptingto the environment, its theoretical foundations and its spatial structure developed as an alternative to office typology, also discusses the promises of the project and the failures within the bigger frame.

ARCHITECTURE AND EDUCATION ASSEMBLY

Accreditation in Architectural Education: Thinking through the Controversial Topics / Nur Esin

Architectural accreditation, with an aim to offer higher quality of learning conditions to “learners” at the level of undergraduate education, is an external assessment process established in the cooperation of the Chamber of Architects, CAT, and Architecture Schools’ Heads of Department Communications Group, MOBBIG. The author, who is the head of Architectural Accreditation Board, conveys the intentions of accreditation with a non-academic language.

ARCHITECTURAL THEORY

Postmodern Theory and Application in MİMARLIK / Sabiha Göloğlu

The adaption of architectural movements, followed in the world, in Turkey have always took some time, however as the author argues, postmodernism was adopted in Turkey concurrent to international architectural practices, and the most important factor behind is the publications within the field. Through evaluating on the editorial policy of 1980s’ Mimarlık magazine, the author touches the points that effected and reflected the architectural practice in the country.

FROM RURAL / CITY

Sazak, the Village behind the Hill / BanuOdabaşı

Sazak, an abandoned village located at Karaburun peninsula, is among the 33 villages, which were listed in the municipal records at the beginning of the 20th century but are not listed in the current records. The village, which was recorded as having its half of its population as Turks and the other half as Greeks in the 19th century,has turned into a deadly settlement, after the great exchange. Today, nearly 250 buildings can be traced through the ruins, projecting the past life to its visitors.

COMPETITION

Municipality of Çanakkale‘Green’ Urban Design Competition for City Square and Environment

The competition opened by the Municipality of Çanakkale aimed to achieve projects, developed parallel to the future vision of Çanakkale and which will propose an urban space enhancing spatial, cultural, artistic, social and ecological values; functionalized to providesustainable, innovative, economic design solutions;create open spaces with genuine identity and reflecting values of the city; integrate the seashore with the city and daily life. Among 9 projects submitted to the competition 3 awards, 3 mention and 2 purchase awards were distributed.

İzmir Development Agency (İZKA) Service Building

The competition opened by İzmir Development Agency aimed to achieve projects, which are consistent in investment and operation costs, innovative, disabled-friendly, and answer the spatial requirements of the agency, benefiting from environmental technologies and engineering solutions, thus attain a significant place in the city. The single-staged, national competition evaluated 90 projects and distributed 3 awards and 4 mention prizes.  

AdıyamanActive Social Centre

The competition announced by the Ministry of Family and Social Policies aimed to achieve projects for the social centre in Adıyaman, which willprovide a platform for organising cultural, social and sportive activities for the participation of disabled people, to be at peace with themselves and with the society and to be productive and independent individuals and to ease the problems experienced by families, thus address issues related with the disabled people like,  takingactive roles in society; providing equal opportunities in the field of education; ensuring a job and profession through freeing them from beingdependent on state, society and family. Among 44 projects submitted to the Adıyaman Active Social Centre competition, 42 projects were evaluated and 3 awards, 5 mention and 5 purchase awards were distributed.

ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN

Industrialisation and Indoor Space/ NilüferSağlarOnay

The article, commenting on the spatial integration of products, manufactured for a particular space, with the space, provides clues not only about the nature of industrial production, as the compelling reality of our times, but also about interior design. The author explores the spatial integration of interior elements, developed to provide freedom to users by enabling continuous change that replaced the “made to last” furniture,designed parallel to the building of the house.

COMPUTATIONAL DESIGN

Morphogenetic Design in Architecture and Pioneering Examples / NilayÖzcan, DenizOrhun

Computer-based technologies, besides digitalisation of conventional design practices, also ensured its place to be used as an input within the design process. By utilising the ability of these technologies to calculate, nature-inspired “morphogenetic design”, has become a conceptwith a certified place defining a field that questions common issues between different disciplines, like biology. The authors evaluate on the subject through pioneering examples in the field of morphogenetic design.

BUILDING TECHNOLOGY AND MATERIALS

Foamed Concrete in Turkey / Dilaver Ekinci

The use of foamed concrete, as a building material in Turkey, is relatively small. The author, who states theexpected advantages and disadvantages of foamed concrete in today’s building technology, also mentions the problems aroused due to its being unrecognised by the TSE (Turkish Standards Institution).

ARCHITECTURE OF THE REPUBLICAN PERIOD

Le Corbusier’s “Three Reminders to Architects” and Maruf Önal’s Ar Apartment / Arbil Ötkünç

Maruf Önal is one of the important architects in understanding the 1940-1990 era of Modern Turkish architecture. The author examines Ar Apartment, which is one of the most significant buildings of Önal, who interprets Le Corbusier’s principles in his own way in buildings he designed. He draws attention to the building, which is under the threat of demolition, due to rising land-market value in Beşiktaş district.

CONTACT

Use of Wood in Sustainable Buildings / Seda Temizer Yöntem

In an era, where we have remembered using natural materials in built environment,brings along many debates on what is sustainable, and what is not. Wood, which has been used in buildings for centuries, can become a problem, when decided to be used in contemporary buildings. The author illustrating examples, where the use of wood is regarded as a solution rather than a problem, briefly explains advantageous points of using wood, like being a recycling material.