Creative Projects for Eminonu

EMINONU

Creative Projects

For

By Mert Gümren

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Eminonu ‘12

CROWD

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Istanbul is a chaotic city and embodies different lifestyles and diverse cultural groups. There is a huge difference in social conditions of people, that can be while travelling different districts inside Istanbul. Eminonu is a historical place in which tourists and local residents live together and that creates a further diversity.

Silhouette of Istanbul is one of the main elements that makes the city different. It is like the trademark or the logo of the city. However, it’s changing with the emergence of modern buildings and skyscrapers.

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The measure of any great

civilization is its cities, and a

measure of a city's greatness is to be found in the quality of its

public spaces, its parks, and

its squares.

John Ruskin

EminonuBeauty in Chaos

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The Real Side of Istanbul

CrowdDiversityChaotic

Otantic

History

Simit

Boza

AppleTea

Turkish Delight

Sahlep

Turkish Coffee

KebabMeat Ball

Lahmacun

Chestnut

Pedlars

Elders

TramPedlars

Folk SongsArabesque Tapes

Birds

Ferry

Birds

Occasionally high prices

People in rush

the Sea

SpicesChestnut

Fish

Ottoman Food

Imitation Clothes

Low quality food

Eat... & Drink... Listen

to...

Avoid...

Take photos of...

Smell...

Visit...

Topkapi PalaceHagia Sophia

Sirkeci

The Blue Mosque The Grand Bazaar

The Spice Bazaar

Süleymaniye Mosque

Mosque of the Valide Sultan

Basilica Cistern

Golden Horn

Ottomans Byzantium

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Cultural Heritage has a broader definition than just tangible cultural objects. It includes, stories, traditions, that passes through generation to generation. Cultural Heritage isn’t static. It’s dynamic and it is constantly being changed and reformulated.

Anyone can have an impact for the future of Eminonu. “Awareness” is the key term for this to occur. One should be aware of the fact that viewscapes and silhouettes of Istanbul are changing. Although we tend to value tangible cultural heritages more, viewscapes are part of the most valuable intangible heritages.

...should urge people stop and think about the place they live in...should point to a deformation, or a negative situation regarding the neighborhood....should create a warm and peaceful environment ...should create a synergy among people

What is Cultural Heritage?

Public Artwork for Eminonu...

Can I have an impact?

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The viewscapes of the city is constantly threatened with new alterations. Especially, with the emergence of new modern buildings, office towers, sky-scrapers in the histori-cal part of Istanbul, the beautiful view of the city is about to disap-pear.

I will present ideas that can be used to inform people about the situation in Eminonu, and provide a criticism about it.

Altered Viewscapes, Silhouettes

and Skylines of Istanbul

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THIS IS NOT YOUR CITY

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Idea for Coffee Cup When the cup is full of coffee of another hot drink, the silluette will change, and big sky scrapers will appear on the horizon. When the cup is empty, the word “not” written in red won’t appear on the cup. The heat will make it appear.

THIS IS NOT YOUR CITY

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Idea for MagazineWhen the page is turned, the transparent page on the right -which has a silluette of sky scrapers, and a slogan- will change the silluette on the left.

THIS IS NOT YOUR CITY

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Mahya with a messageTraditionally, in Ramadan, Mahyas are hung between two Minarets of the same Mosque. The picture on the right is representative of what I have in mind but not the depiction of the idea. In my actual idea, the Mahya will be hung between two skyscrapers and the same Mahya will be hung between two skyscrapers. This will be a good criticism of how the city changes as the society modernizes, and how it starts to lose its constituent values.

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Minimalist Illustration SeriesIn these series, viewscapes will be altered in a way such that important elements in these photos will be converted to solid colors. There will be many illustration such as this one, and they will have the same idea, the important parts of the silluette will only consist of solid color. These illustrations will give people a good idea about the absence of important elements that create the silluette of Istanbul as it is now.

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Binoculars in Eminonu SquareThere will be a binocular in the middle of Eminonu Square, and it will be fixed on the ground. It will be directed to the beautiful viewscape of Eminonu, and the people passing by will be able to use it for free. However, the people who are willing to look at the beautiful view of the place will be disappointed when they look from the binoculars. There will be an image embedded to the binocular’s glasses, and that will be the altered viewscape of Eminonu. It will create an awareness in a way that people will have an incentive to look at the current silluette and see the emerging situation.

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Eminonu BENim CampaignThis campaign will enable people to feel attached to the values and the environment in Eminonu. In these designed badges, there will be a slogan and an illustration about the important places in Istanbul, such as Galata Tower. It is a campaign that can be developed to capture more attention but, its aim is to create an awareness about the changing viewscapes of eminonu and, the attachement people form between the city and themselves. As people put these badges to their rooms, bags etc, more people will know about the situation in Eminonu.

EminönüBENim

EminönüBENim

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EminönüBENim

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One More Cup of Tea-sculpture made of tea cups-In this sculpture there will be a man trying to climb to the top of tea cup. And there will be a silluette of Eminonu in the cup, that is not distorded by newly established buildings. The man will try to reach the untouched silluette of Istanbul.

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How is Eminonu changing in time?

What would you like to preserve?

What is the cultural heritage of Eminonu for you?

What do you imagine Eminonu look 50 years ago?

Eminonu is getting crowder and crowder with the tourists and the native people. Besides, new -so called- modern buildings are established close to the most important monumental buildings in Eminonu, and it threatens the viewscape of istanbul.

I would like the preserve traditional soul of Eminonu. As the society change, the things they do and that’s the reason that a lot of activity is dissapearing. Also, as time passes by, the importance that people show to the historical buildings is decreasing. Merchants are the most important people in that area that creates a soul, and atmosphere, in which both tourists and native people come together. But with the emergence of big shopping malls, they will probably be in danger, and they will start to dissappear one by one. I would like to preserve the soul that the merchants create in that area.

Cultural Heritage has a broader definition than just tangible cultural objects. It includes, stories, traditions, that passes through generation to generation. Due to this fact, Eminonu is more than just a combination of historical buildings. With its merchants, its birds, its street hawkers, and its tourists, it is a unique place in terms of culture, architecture, and lifestyle

I would like to imagine Eminonu as it is today, but it would change significantly. As the population increases, the buildings would increase simultaneously and eventually, the buildings would occupy the most important areas of the historical silluette of Istanbul.

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Sensescape of Eminonu

Eminonu is very rich district in terms of smell, and spices and specific odors. This richness became usual for the people living in Eminonu, and they are no longer sensitive to the smells around them.

With this project people will realize how beautiful their city are, and how its smell is an important element. They will be moresensitive to the smells after they see the artwork. That is what this artwork aims to achieve, to activate the senses. In thatway, people will have warm ideas about the place they live in, and the community will come together in a sensory platform.

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Smell in Absence-sculpture made of jars-This artwork will consist of glass cans with different size, that is, the heights will have ranges between 1,6-1,8 meter.These cans will have different labels, and these labels will have the names of the characteristic smells of Eminonu. For example, “Smell ofSea”, “Smell of Fish/Bread”, or “Amber” will be written on the cans. However, these cans will be empty,giving the viewer the opportunity to stop and think. What they see is actually the smell in the air, the smell of Eminonu.

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