Culture center readies for renovation project
Güncelleme Tarihi:
Hurriyet Daily News
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Kasım 25, 2008 00:00
ISTANBUL - The Atatürk Culture Center, or AKM, will be renovated by architect Murat Tabanlıoğlu, the son of the architect who completed the building in 1969, according to the protocol signed by the Istanbul 2010 European Capital of Culture Agency and the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. The building is expected to finish in autumn 2009
After long talks and arguments over whether it should be demolished or not, the big culture center in Taksim Square prepares for renovation works.
The renovation project of the Atatürk Culture Center, or AKM, which is a colossal structure for the city of Istanbul, is given to its architecture’s son this time. The project manager, architecture Murat Tabanlıoğlu, is the son of the architecture who finished the construction of the building in 1969.
With the protocol signed by the Tourism and Culture Ministry and undertaken by the 2010 European Culture Capital Agency, the renovation project is expected to finish within less than two years. The Istanbul 2010 European Capital of Culture Agency and the Ministry of Culture and Tourism will also have the right to decide what will be modified in the structure.
Latest technology
The general frame of the project has been prepared and it will be ready to host art lovers as a renewed building designed with the latest technology and architecture combining traces from the past before Istanbul’s year as Europe’s culture capital begins in 2010.
The building will be handled as two sections during the renovation project. Facelifts will be given to one side, where the halls are, and another side, where the storage rooms are.
Among the restoration work, there will be renovations for the installations, the light and sound systems. Then the façade and the roof will be reconstructed. As a whole the building will be displaying a good amount of advanced technology. Besides changing the entrance and designing an extended welcoming hall for the guests and forming a big lobby, the ticket sales windows will be removed from the right part of the building, the stage entrance will be rearranged, the halls will be renewed and the area around the spiral stairs, which is an item symbolizing the time it was built, will be opened.
The AKM’s front part that faces Taksim Square will look similar to the actual design, yet it will be more transparent and with a new technology it will be able to display video and art like a huge TV screen.
The AKM plans to raise awareness of its brand by selling concert CDs, exhibition catalogues, notebooks, postcards and souvenirs. The staircases inside the building will be changed according to fire regulations. The project also aims to make space for more rehearsal rooms because the present situation is lacking. The new design will take advantage of sunlight for rehearsals. The art gallery will have moving panels so that its layout can change easily.
The Tourism and Culture Ministry has offered to put a restaurant on the top floor of the AKM with a view of the Bosphorus for artists and employees. The project is slated to finish during fall of 2009 so that artists can start rehearsing for performances scheduled for 2010.
Precautions to preserve the building’s cultural heritage are also being taken. It is thus planned to preserve the building’s architectural features.
The renovation project of the Atatürk Culture Center, or AKM, which is a colossal structure for the city of Istanbul, is given to its architecture’s son this time. The project manager, architecture Murat Tabanlıoğlu, is the son of the architecture who finished the construction of the building in 1969.
With the protocol signed by the Tourism and Culture Ministry and undertaken by the 2010 European Culture Capital Agency, the renovation project is expected to finish within less than two years. The Istanbul 2010 European Capital of Culture Agency and the Ministry of Culture and Tourism will also have the right to decide what will be modified in the structure.
Latest technology
The general frame of the project has been prepared and it will be ready to host art lovers as a renewed building designed with the latest technology and architecture combining traces from the past before Istanbul’s year as Europe’s culture capital begins in 2010.
The building will be handled as two sections during the renovation project. Facelifts will be given to one side, where the halls are, and another side, where the storage rooms are.
Among the restoration work, there will be renovations for the installations, the light and sound systems. Then the façade and the roof will be reconstructed. As a whole the building will be displaying a good amount of advanced technology. Besides changing the entrance and designing an extended welcoming hall for the guests and forming a big lobby, the ticket sales windows will be removed from the right part of the building, the stage entrance will be rearranged, the halls will be renewed and the area around the spiral stairs, which is an item symbolizing the time it was built, will be opened.
The AKM’s front part that faces Taksim Square will look similar to the actual design, yet it will be more transparent and with a new technology it will be able to display video and art like a huge TV screen.
The AKM plans to raise awareness of its brand by selling concert CDs, exhibition catalogues, notebooks, postcards and souvenirs. The staircases inside the building will be changed according to fire regulations. The project also aims to make space for more rehearsal rooms because the present situation is lacking. The new design will take advantage of sunlight for rehearsals. The art gallery will have moving panels so that its layout can change easily.
The Tourism and Culture Ministry has offered to put a restaurant on the top floor of the AKM with a view of the Bosphorus for artists and employees. The project is slated to finish during fall of 2009 so that artists can start rehearsing for performances scheduled for 2010.
Precautions to preserve the building’s cultural heritage are also being taken. It is thus planned to preserve the building’s architectural features.