“Architecture and Spectacle” which is a panel organized parallel to the “The FACTORY” exhibition curated by  Nil Aynalı and Ali Pasaoglu, will be held in National Reassurance Arts Gallery Conference Hall, on 24^th of February 2012, at 17:30.

In the panel  a reading of architecture medium in Turkey will made through the concept of  “Society of the Spectacle” of Guy Debord, by the speakers Uğur Tanyeli, Bülent Tanju and Emre Arolat.

EAA-Emre Arolat Architects wins the award with “Cendere Valley Urban Design Project” which was coordinated by Istanbul Metropoliten Planning Agency (IMP), in the Mixed Use Projects category in Mipim AR Review Future Project Awards.

Cendere Valley Urban Design Project focuses on the Kağıthane Cendere Valley region  where pressure of urban transformation is heavily felt. This region which was used as an agricultural field during Ottoman period and occupied with large numbers of industrial plants,  with the industrialization move during the Early Republican period and especially after 50’s,  stands at the threshold of an essential urban transformation with the pressure of the up-rising service sector and Büyükdere Street close by. Cendere Valley Urban Design Project, presents a model of green public space where the existing ecological corridor of the valley is protected  and  different functions are combined together and opened to the public use, while averting functional zoning and urban segregation. As an opponent stance to the high construction regions offered for the Project, a construction which creates a low but sufficient density to create an “urban” situation is suggested. This construction combines low storey buildings and high blocks which are placed conveniently not to block the air corridor in between.

Emre Arolat who has won the Agha Khan Award for Architecture in 2010, was also commended in two categories in MIPIM AR Future Awards 2011 with “Varyap Merkez Retail and Cultural Center” and “Zorlu Center” projects.

Mipim AR Future Project Awards which is co-organized by English Architecture Magazine  Architecture Review and worlds one of the foremost real estate fair MIPIM, asseses the projects over their meeting the needs of the clients in the means of being creative, current and examples of good architecture and takes attention to their contributions to the social life and being designed with the conciousness of social and environmental responsibility.

The awards ceremony of MIPIM AR Future Project Awards, will be held in “The Hotel JW Marriot  in Cannes” on March 7th 2012.

Istanbul, Turkey

Today when we step on the Kagıthane Cendere Valley we feel that we are in a decomposed place. This is one of the warehouses that the city has forgotten. The green hills and the factory chimneys that look into the valley, the high rise apartments, the new formation that consists of squatter houses, and the intertwined and at the same time disconnected conjunction of a viaduct and the brook beneath it that dissappears towards the northern forests greet us as we arrive to the place.

In midst of this scenery the traces of a new budding condition can be seen. The high rise blocks that have been surrounded by walls stand facing the texture that has come flowing from the Buyukdere Avenue. Ahead new office buildings are trying to settle into the ground. It appears that the wave of transformation is almost about to reach here. The condition of this valley 100 year ago consists of a memory that has been left in ancient engravings… The valley that has been used as an agricultural area in the last years of the Ottoman Empire, fills up with industrial areas in 1950s with the beginning of the Republican period. Industrial area effects the environment and the brook negatively. The area sustains its life as it is for a long time. Coming to today from 1980s, the transition to the post-fordist production and the decentralization of the industry from big cities, necessitate a transformation that is triggered by the service sector’s rising existence and the need for offices and residences as a result.

A lot of the urban transformation processes in Turkey, appears as gentrifications of the existing city texture.The loss of character of the existing texture when it was aimed to gentrify it in the first place results in processes that result in the citizen to alienate from the place where he was born and growed up in and lose his place that cause painful conditions that are socially charged. The transformation in Cendere contains a replanning of the place that has become available with the leave of a function that is going to decentralize. In this sense it can be said that it breaks away from the urban transformations that displace people.

The association that the land owners in Cendere Valley has formed, aims to organize this actualization of transformation in a more integrated plan. For this reason, the association consulted by Istanbul Metropolitan Planning Governance which covers the area in 4 parts, introduces architecture firms like EAA into the process. In this project, in planning sustainable urban transformation process, EAA’s main approach can be accepted as not disregarding the expectations of the investors, looking out for the rights of the land owners and residents, increasing the public use areas and protecting social, ecological and environmental values. To sustain the green corridor character of the Cendere Valley for Istanbul by preserving the low density, and with this to also to obtain a density enough to create an urban life, was taken as a strategic decision referring to the whole area. This decision necessitated being in the antagonist position against all of the actors that wanted high density during the process.

Cendere Valley is in one of the most important ecological corridors in Istanbul. The forests on the Black sea side and the low-density settlement in the base of the valley, sustain this quality of the valley.

Cendere Valley is also located between the TEM and E5 highways which are important arteries of the city and with this quality it becomes advantageous in terms of transportation. The Buyukdere Avenue that is to the left of the valley is the most important initiator.The main arteries and building textures that left between Buyukdere Avenue and the valley, carry the potential to transform and connect these two areas. The Anadolu and Cendere Avenues that continue along the area, emerge as important, open to progress arteries of the region.

In the proposal, a controlled density that’s limits has been determined

by sustaining the buildings along Cendere and Anadolu avenues, emerges as an important instrument in the generation of city texture.

In this context, the continuity of the block that holds the avenue fronts, will be a decision that will effect the identity of the urban formation positively. The continuity of the arcade besides the edge of the avenue creates a sheltered walkway line infront of the commercial units on the ground floor.

The low-rise blocks along the main traffic arteries that hold one side of the avenue, on one hand keeps the continuity of the texture and on the other creates a permeable facade between the ecological corridor thats in th line of the avenue and the brook.

In the ground elevation which was planned to have dense public use, are passages and transitions that enable the pedestrian access between the avenue and the brook line and create a visual relationship.

Similarly, semi-open shaded spaces that enable multiple uses are placed rather than masses with uninterrupted facades,in the office zone. To seperate the functions to different blocks in plan level, creates irreparable division and divergence in the city texture. For this reason, instead of zoning in plan, the strategy of seperating functions in section was accepted as a way to sustain the mixed function building in the whole area.

The green terrace that is on the office zone divides the private areas on the upper grades from the public areas that are closer to the ground.

Beneath the gren terrace is the semi-public zone in which education, information, technology and office spaces are. The residential blocks that will be placed in the last layer of this formation settles on top of the continuous texture. Residential blocks use the green terrace as a common open space.

The focus points that will be planned to sign the activity areas with different thresholds along the ecologic line, will break the uniformity and create target points that will bring a rhythm to the urban environment.

The buildings that continuously follow one line along the avenue, will recede back and create steps in the brook side occasionally and allow the green areas both in plan and in section,to penetrate the building on ground level and the terraces on upper grades.

Along the valley high-rise blocks were avoided to not block the North-south air corridor and a formation combining low-rise and high-rise blocks was proposed.

The conjunction of the concrete channel that will be built fort he brook recovery and the green area should be a soft transitional band rather than a divergent and sharp line.

The Cendere region evolves into an ecological corridor enticing for all citizens.Thus, the near surrounding environment can reach a soft ground and natural water edge and the Cendere region evolves to be an ecological corridor enticing for not just the Cendere Region but for the whole city.

The rail system if placed near the brook recovery line with using compatible systems with nature, will increase the use of the valley and become a crucial vehicle.

Antakya, Turkey

The archeological findings discovered in an excavation on the project site in Antakya which is close to St. Pierre Church (an important Christian pilgrimage site), directed the employer who was planning to build a five-star hotel, to build a museum-hotel on the site. The dichotomy between the public program of an archeological park and the private use of the hotel becomes a major input in the design process.

The findings discovered during the excavations and the physical and sociological characteristics of Antakya act as primary sources of contextual information. The hotel, a placeless building-type defined by its own programmatic codes; turns itself inside out to deal with the specific characteristics of this unique situation and place. Since the hotel will be situated on a site characterized by archeological findings, in order to deal with this unique situation the program elements are considered as individual units spread on the site under a protective canopy, rather than building a compact, introverted, conventional hotel building.

The location of the findings discovered on site determines the exact location of the columns. The composite columns are situated on the trace of former riverbed that goes through the middle of the site and on the periphery of the site in order to minimize any potential damage to the findings. The canopy supported by these columns acts both as a marker for the archeological park and as a platform housing program elements such as the ballroom, meeting rooms, swimming pool and fitness center. This platform creates vista points to enjoy the view of the city and St.Pierre Hill and sustains the local tradition of roof terraces. Slits on the platform act as skylights for the archeological site below and provide a visual connection between the findings and the hotel amenities located on the platform.

The main body of hotel is consisted of prefabricated hotel-room units stacked on top of each other. The room-units placed on the steel sub-structure are connected to the main circulation with walkways and bridges. The rooms are located under the main canopy and this semi-open space creates an inner world where one can experience the climate and local conditions and has visual contact with the excavation site all the time. Terraces and gardens located under the canopy enhance the experience.  The lobby, restaurant and lounge are located on the lower levels in relation with the archeological site. With its characteristics, the hotel becomes a site-specific building without compromising spatial standards of a five-star hotel.

The open-air circulation path, composed of ramps and bridges, allows visitors to experience the archeological park from different perspectives. The InfoBox marks the beginning of the path and displays information about the findings on the site.

The pre-fabricated components of the hotel help minimize in-situ fabrication. The building is assembled on site rather than being built there and reminds one of the temporary structures built by archeologists during the excavation.