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Istanbul's iconic Atatürk Cultural Center demolished
Istanbul's iconic Atatürk Cultural Center demolished
Demolition works at Istanbul’s iconic Atatürk Cultural Center (AKM) were completed on May 30. Here is the story of the demolition in the photos taken by Nazlı Sanberk in the past three years...
The building will be replaced with a cultural complex that will include an opera house, an exhibition center and other facilities.
The demolition had started three years ago.
The new structure is expected to be completed as of the first quarter of 2019.
The new plan also includes opera, theater, cinema and concert halls, an exhibition center, and a convention hall, together with other facilities such as a library, a museum, an art gallery and commercial units such as a café and a restaurant.
The total size of the center, overlooking Taksim Square and Gezi Park in the Beyoğlu district will increase to 35,206 square meters, up from 5,794 square meters.
In November 2017, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan announced that the new building would be completed in 2019. But the Chamber of Architects has repeated its criticism on the demolishment of the old building.
“The AKM is one of the monumental symbols of modern Turkish architecture and of the Republic,” the Istanbul branch of the chamber had previously said.
It had also referred to a previous decision which deemed the AKM a cultural asset, calling the demolishment of the building “a crime.”
It had also referred to a previous decision which deemed the AKM a cultural asset, calling the demolishment of the building “a crime.”
The construction of the initial AKM building began on May 29, 1946. However, due to lack of a big enough grant, construction was stopped for many years. Ten years later, the construction restarted with Hayati Tabanlıoğlu as the architect. It was finished after 23 years and came into use on April 12, 1969 under the name Istanbul Cultural Palace. However, during a performance of Arthur Miller’s play “The Crucible” on Nov. 27, 1970 a tragic fire started in the building, which caused severe destruction.
Hayati Tabanlıoğlu repaired the building but it only reopened eight years later under a new name, the Atatürk Cultural Center.
In 2005, Atilla Koç, the culture minister of the time, proposed to demolish the building, saying it did not make enough profit. However, the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) abandoned this plan following intense reactions.
In November 2007, the Istanbul Protection Board registered the AKM as a cultural asset, and in February 2012 restoration work began with 30 million Turkish Liras in support from Sabancı Holding. This work was later cancelled as it emerged that restoration of the building was “impossible.”
Here are more photos from the demolition process, till the end...
ALL PHOTOS
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