Design Team: Elmira Jafari, Erfan Farahmand, Ahmad Moradian
Location: Istanbul, Turkey
Status: Competition, Honorable Mention Prize Winner
Organized by Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality, it was a two-stage international competition with 146 submitted proposals. As the modern heart of Istanbul and the most significant public space of the city, Takism is a remnant of historical layers of construction, demolition, and reconstruction over a century.
To create an inclusive and democratic public space, our proposal "[Un]Beating Heart of Istanbul" places people at the centre of design strategies. The synergy between Gezi park and Taksim square is a key strategy to unlock the potentials of the site, creating a people-friendly public space.
Taksim square is a space of flows, intersection, expression, and confrontation. It is a modern city centre with multi-faceted, multi-layered, and multiscale characters. Taksim is a place for social, cultural, and political confrontations. As a place for social participation, Taksim has always hosted a diversity of social, economic, ethnic, gender and age groups.