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TAKSIM URBAN DESIGN COMPETITITON

ISTANBUL

uniting and scattering “The rising city in confusion fair Magnificently form’d irregular Where Woods and Palaces at once surprise Gardens, on Gardens, Domes on Domes arise....”

Lady Mary Wortley Montegau

CELESTIAL DOME

the CAREOGRAPHY OF DOMES

an analogue model of cosmos

omnidirectional

circle sphere dome round universe loop flux

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The entirety of the built environment exists in a state of flux and adaptation dependent on the mutual relation between society and its spatial outcomes.

Accordingly public space or in better words “urban common” should eventually alter and mold itself. While revitalization is a must, in the case of Taksim Square and Gezi Park , there is also an apparent vagueness of spatial identity to be elucidated.

CHAREOGRAPHY OF DOMES, ISTANBUL Istanbul has a unique landscape and geography with its own built environment which is actually orchestrated layer on layer through a long history. Considering the fact that different societies have long lived on this geography the city has a quality of cultural heritage not only for Turkish Republic but also for many other nations. Right after the image of Bosporus the second particular image of the city

is sequences of domes. Byzantine domes, Greek church domes, Turkish Bath domes, Mosque domes, Grand Bazaar domes... “domes on domes arise”.

Only by ignoring the very recent mass construction silhouettes, cerography of domes is still the most recognizable human made picture of this historic city.

Considering the elemental beauty and phenomenon of dome , inevitably this influential geometry reveals its own social and aesthetic potentials. Dome with its embracing form and being, could connect people under one roof and scatter them around as parts of the one coherent whole, just as happened in the history of Istanbul. The form of uniting and scattering... Since dome is purely omnidirectional, a dome or even a cluster of domes has a huge potential to connect various parameters of space as a one coherent whole under its neutral form.

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URBAN CARPET / WHIRLING PATTERN The proposed design is materialized by two-dimensional projection of dome form, and dome transforms into a sphere and consequently series of spheres.

Taksim square and its periphery are so defined by a pure geometric form which properly multiplied and dilated. Various sized spheres and their various compositions defines a series of thematic areas that can freely expand or contract according to the needs of users. The pattern of spheres eventually generates an urban carpet. In order to perceive the space as one coherent place, the urban carpet is expanded across the roads around. By so doing not only the square itself but also the peripheral zones are delineated , and even these peripheral zones can be fully used for larger events and occasions. The whirling pattern of the carpet intensifies the urban continuum. The urban carpet is remarkable by the solidity of its natural stone surface, which is composed by mainly Marmara marble.

TAKSIM SQUARE / THE CELESTIAL DOME With the interpretation of domes, Taksim square, as the urban hall and the main gathering zone of Istanbul, turns metaphorically into a celestial dome which is concentric to urban common in this case. The celestial dome differentiates from the other spherical patterns of the urban carpet because of its capacity, public meaning and social gravitational force. For the material here Marmara marble and Bergama granite is used together in order to mimic a whirling force of the literal center of this collective urban void. For night usage recessed effect lighting is suggested on this target zone to represent the image of celestial dome and enrich the atmosphere. The project here balances between the concrete and the enigmatic.

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TRANSPORTATION AND ACCESS ROUTES

INTERSECTION OF VARIOUS FUNCTIONS

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URBAN BAYS Taksim Gezi Park(Inonu Gezisi), a public garden of some forty thousand square meters adjoining Taksim Square in the Beyoğlu district. The park was designed by the French urban planner Henri Prost, who was commissioned by President Mustafa Kemal Atatürk to carry out ambitious plans for modernizing the city in the 1940s and 1950s. Ottoman-style Artillery Barracks, which was built atop a graveyard was demolished in 1943 in order to extend the free surface of Taksim Square. Thus, the site was once necropolis then a military zone and finally an urban garden which was originally connected to ParkNo2. However, considering the current situation, the park is a way too introverted, connecting actually nowhere by its own circulation routes, lacking the feeling of safety and comfort, and moreover the level difference between the square and park appears to be as an obstacle which prevents the fluidity among square, park and streets around.

The proposed project aimed to dissolve this level difference and offer a smooth porosity and fluidity. The reformation of park is planned carefully to minimize disruption to the sub-surface, and even conserving the height difference in the park which is the trace of courtyard of Artillery barrack. Sinuous shaped slight interventions on the morphology of edges generates so called urban bays which offers autonomous and comparatively small sized public spaces with irregular amphitheater formations and green texture leaks into the Cumhuriyet Caddesi.

Urban bays do not try to establish rigid configurations but leaves room for improvisation.

CIVIC STAGE As an aesthetic sculpture-like object, a Civic Stage is positioned literally on the junction point of park and square. Civic Stage aims to reunite the park and the square while legitimating the freedom of speech and any kind of performing with its actual existence. With its disk-like form, Civic Stage is dag asymmetrically into a mound-like structure in which people can freely climb up or a preparation room could be organized for performing arts, rallies and etc. .

Thanks to the omnidirectionality of its form being a circle, the Civic Stage can gather both the park and the square with its audience around for various uses. It can also be adopted as a panorama terrace or even more improvisational usage, thus an elevated stage image which is conventionally used for autocratic rallies becomes a part of daily life by being casually used by citizens. The program of regular concerts and shows gives a new lease of life. This stage object should also be considered as a manifestation by offering and normalizing collective actions. In one way or another this participatory Civic Stage portrays the physicality of citizenship as a form of insurgent urbanism. The stageis a modernized equivalent of “Rostra” but it is totally “civic” and used also by random citizens in this case.

‘Only where things can be seen by many in a variety of aspects without changing their identity, so that those who are gathered around them know they see sameness in utter diversity, can worldly reality truly and reliably appear.’

Hannah Ardent

‘“Public space is a place in which there is a momentary condition of equality” Saskia Sassen

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SET OF SQUARES / INTERCONNECTION OF ATMOSPHERES The main design principle is the realization of non- hierarchical environment in which users can become protagonists in the definition of space itself. What really matters is the ability to multiply relations among citizens and place. Thus, there is actually no longer a simple square and one specific atmosphere, but a set of “piazzas” and various atmospheres interconnected with each other and capable of triggering relationships. By so doing, all kinds of things can be going on at once in its different corners. The principle is enforcing the quality of public space by simply enforcing Taksim Square and Gezi Park’s presence and current spatial potentials. Thus, with the proposed design on the

south side the walls around Atatürk Library is removed and private garden of library is now a public Library Park offering a new cultural atmosphere. At the same part of the site, the back entrance of AKM gets connected to Gezi Park and Atatürk Library, thus now this zone is called “Piazza of Library”. For similar reasons on the south west part of the site , the disqualified relatively small buildings in front of Aya Triada Church are removed. Accordingly , the hidden image of Church is now more accessible , and with the Mosque right across the street now there is an atmosphere with cultural variability is offered. This zone is called now “Piazza of Istiklal”. Besides, by this reorganization, public stairs and an urban screen are proposed in order to enrich the variable possible usages.

MEMORY AXIS AND CROSSROADS Gezi Park is reorganized with its atmosphere and life inside, but all of the trees and except smoothing the edges, the particular morphology are conserved. The purpose is adopted as reconstructing the foundations of its identity. Considering the collective memory of the main axis of original Gezi Park (Inonu Gezisi) design

by Henri Prost , the axis is revitalized as a trace in the park, Memory Axis Alle. One way or another this trace brings people to Taksim Square . Two dead-straight crossroads are found in the park giving shortcut connections from “Piazza of Istiklal” to “Piazza of Library” and from AKM to north side of Cumhuriyet Caddesi.

By so doing park appears to be on daily routes of main circulation directions.

is designed as a “Forum Bowl” where people could get organized for forums, workshops, discussions or even for some occasional events. In order to expand or contract the orbit of Forum Bowl when it is needed, brick patterns are loosely configurated around. The Forum Bowl could also be considered as an outcome of Gezi Park protests of 2013.

SERENDIPITY / SCATTERED URBAN ELEMENTS Serendipity could be considered as a sub-concept of the proposed project because of the casual composition of facilities. The aim is to vitalize contemporary spatial usage opportunities into a historic context.

Several public art pieces are randomly positioned in Gezi Park and so visitors WANDERING PATHS would explore them just by wandering around. Thus park turns also into an Accepting the park as an urban living room, orchestrating the life in Gezi Park ends open air exhibition. Urban Furniture is scattered in different zones and up with randomly positioned urban elements with a loose configuration strategy. atmospheres with an irregular order, and thus a place of urban comfort is offered Some play-scape elements for adults and kids, basketball pots, public art pieces, in all different corners of the site. The same composition strategy is valid also for urban furniture, even lighting elements, drinking fountains, wc cabins and kiosks the playscape elements in and around the site. Basically playscape elements distribute facilities throughout the park. Thus a lazy wandering path is positioned are accepted not only for children but also for adults. Thus these elements should which allows visitors to explore Gezi Park in a leisurely way. On the contrary of now be designed in an unconventional way in order to engage people in all ages. current situation , green texture covers up the whole park domain and some brick Moreover, adopting the fact that kids are just short human beings , facilities and floored open rooms are just scattered in the green texture of park. playscapes are evenly positioned for them throughout the site to encourage kids getting participate in the society from the early ages.

NEGATIVE DOME / THE FORUM BOWL In the square some water features could be found in order to attract people Gezi park’s public domain is tried to be designed in a way to exemplify how when there is nothing happening and give a cool breeze in hot summer days. a legible public domain framework can unite a site. Sticking to the main These water features are imaged to give a more atmospheric mood instead of concept of uniting power of domes, as the core of Gezi Park , a negative dome is just being common fountains. They are more like clouds of cold water vapour , just positioned where a circular texture has already been found for long times even as an ethereal art piece. since the Artillery Barracks. In order to stimulate this zone, The negative dome 7

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CELECTIAL DOME

Patterns anf effect lighting of the Celestial Dome

Marmara marble & Bergama Granite

CROSSROAD AXIS & WANDERING PATHS

Compositon of green texture and natural stones

Marmara marble tiling & marmara cobblestone

Marmara Marble tiling

Marmara Marble cobblestone 8

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OPEN STREET TERRACE, ROAD AND BOLLARD BARRIERS

Pattern, usage and spatial relation in front of peripheral buildings

Marmara marble & Bergama granite tiling

THE FORUM BOWL

Pattern compositon of green texture, crossroad axis and brick tiling

Marmara marble & brick tiling

Bergama granite tiling

Brick tiling 9

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URBAN FURNITURE

WATER FEATURE & RAINWATER DRAINAGE

LIGHTING STRATEGY In order to stimulate the dynamism of Taksim Square and the peripheral site together in the dark hours of evening and night, a programmable and adaptive lighting system is proposed. The vertical light elements react to the movements of pedestrians and interaction on the square. Thus a dynamic mood and atmosphere transformation is offered. Additionally on “the celestial dome “ a recessed floor lighting system is proposed.

URBAN MOUND AS A TOPOGRAPHIC ELEMENT

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SCENARIO _ a day of rally or protest

SCENARIO _ a concert or festival

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SCENARIO _ an ordinary day in Gezi Park

SCENARIO _ casual usage of an urban bay PROPOSED PLANTATION While conserving all trees in Gezi Park, with the aim of improving the climatic conditions new tree plantation is offered in order to have thicker vegetation. To highlight the crossroads and The Memory Axis AllĂŠ, on one side of these deadstraight paths series of trees are proposed. Near urban bays trees are to be planted in order to offer shady comfort zones. Additionally on the south part of the site right near the Taksim Square , a series of tree plantation is offered again.

For trees mostly endemics of Istanbul are preferred: Cedars( are especially for the sides of crossroads in the park to keep the green texture even in winter season) Weeping Wilow (Salix babylonica) is more for sides of Urban bays because of their large shades. Mimosa (Acacia Dealbata) Redbud tree (Cercis canadensis) Wisteria

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SCENARIO _ a market day and temporary structure usage

SCENARIO _ temporary canopy usage when it is needed

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SCENARIO _ temporary ice skating rink for winter days

SCENARIO _ an instance of urban screen usage , televising a live concert

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