Places of Memory attempts to explore the theme of “Absorbing Modernity: 1914-2014” via perceptions and experiences, focusing on three areas of Istanbul: Taksim-Karaköy, Bab-ı Ali/Sirkeci, Büyükdere.
“Living in a city like Istanbul—which is experiencing an incredible urban transformation, especially in the last decade—it seems vital to look at what really is happening. Being aware that architecture and the built environment are not solely related to their subjects, but also related to us, in other words, related to our own memories about the place, it seems crucial to ask: what if we lose these? Are we about to lose our own memories? Let’s for a while try to relate to the built environment through our own experiences, through our own past, through a subjective approach to feel what it means to us.”
—Murat Tabanlıoğlu
Excerpt from Places of Memory / Hafıza Mekanları (Istanbul: İKSV, 2014): 8
