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DISPLACED/REPLACED MOSQUE

YEAR:Fall 2014

SIZE:124,000 SF

LOCATION:Istanbul, Turkey

 

Turkey is in the midst of a culture war between secular and conservative Muslim values. This project considers a competition brief to build a mosque on Camlica hill in Istanbul forms a solution that is considerate of both sides of the cultural divide. Rather than create an ostentatious display of religiosity in opposition to secularism; the new project is sensitive to site, scale, and the surrounding neighborhood. This mosque takes its programmatic cues from the historical Rustem Pasha Mosque and its stacking of commercial function below the main structure. Retail has traditionally been a part of the planning for mosques, with retail financially supporting upkeep of the mosque. The design of the structure also takes cues from landscape artist Michael Heitzer’s work Displaced/Replaced Mass . The ground is excavated the excavated mass is rotated towards mecca and perched back on the site. The form of the project is informed by a series of sculptural models formed from striated plywood.

In Displaced/Replaced Mosque a rectangular volume of the hill is removed, then a rotated structure is placed in a skewed form across the excised void. Circulation and retail spaces are created in the skewed spaces surrounding the mosque. Rather than facing a single direction, the main hall of the mosque is organized like a stadium with seating facing both down and up when looking towards the quibla. The spaces created by the skewing of landscape and the organization of circulation allow for men and women to have equal entrance spaces while still maintaining a traditional separation. Circulation through the mosque is accomplished through a large monumental stair that arcs into the center of the mosque. This stair also allows users to navigate around the mosque without ever entering it if they wish. Retail is reintegrated into the form of the project in the form of a double tiered outdoor marketplace. The project tries to place a more appropriately scaled mosque back onto the site and then add useful function in an effort to circulate people through.

PROJECT INFO

YEAR: Fall 2014

SIZE: 124,000 SF

LOCATION: Istanbul, Turkey

Turkey is in the midst of a culture war between secular and conservative Muslim values. This project considers a competition brief to build a mosque on Camlica hill in Istanbul forms a solution that is considerate of both sides of the cultural divide. Rather than create an ostentatious display of religiosity in opposition to secularism; the new project is sensitive to site, scale, and the surrounding neighborhood. This mosque takes its programmatic cues from the historical Rustem Pasha Mosque and its stacking of commercial function below the main structure. Retail has traditionally been a part of the planning for mosques, with retail financially supporting upkeep of the mosque. The design of the structure also takes cues from landscape artist Michael Heitzer's work Displaced/Replaced Mass . The ground is excavated the excavated mass is rotated towards mecca and perched back on the site. The form of the project is informed by a series of sculptural models formed from striated plywood.

In Displaced/Replaced Mosque a rectangular volume of the hill is removed, then a rotated structure is placed in a skewed form across the excised void. Circulation and retail spaces are created in the skewed spaces surrounding the mosque. Rather than facing a single direction, the main hall of the mosque is organized like a stadium with seating facing both down and up when looking towards the quibla. The spaces created by the skewing of landscape and the organization of circulation allow for men and women to have equal entrance spaces while still maintaining a traditional separation. Circulation through the mosque is accomplished through a large monumental stair that arcs into the center of the mosque. This stair also allows users to navigate around the mosque without ever entering it if they wish. Retail is reintegrated into the form of the project in the form of a double tiered outdoor marketplace. The project tries to place a more appropriately scaled mosque back onto the site and then add useful function in an effort to circulate people through.