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G. Cakar:
"#Gezi Yorum";
Supervisor: C Hohenbüchler; Institut für Kunst und Gestaltung, 2014; final examination: 2014-06-24.

The Gezi protests, that aimed to prevent the reconstruction of the Topcu barracks on the site of the current Gezi park, were an indicator of the relation between architecture, soci- ology, politics and economy in the city of Istanbul. The big- gest civilian movement in the story of Turkey quickly took a political turn and expanded in other cities as well. The Gezi protests became a symbol for the right of a say of the citizens and is more or less now referred to as the Gezi resistance.
The feeling of despair, that apparently a lot of citizens were carrying, led me to the decision to focus on Istanbul´s urban planning problems for my diploma thesis. Istanbul, nowa- days on its way to becoming a global city, undergoes a series of transformation processes, that threaten the living quality of its 14 millions inhabitants. The neoliberal system gradu- ally widens the gap between rich and poor.
Their separate lifestyles allow no communication between the social classes. The decisions taken carry traces of an is- lamic conservative and neoliberal ideology, that dominates the city for the past 20 years and the whole country for the past 10 years. The election victory of the conservative party comes along with the demographic evolution of Istanbul and Turkey. Until the Gezi protests, my plan was to present a typical citizen pro le, using individual stories told in a spe- ci c chronological order. A citizen pro le that would bring out these gaps and problems. While being in the process, the Gezi protests begun and gave me the perfect example to explain and analyze the cause of the con ict.
On the fourth day of the protests, on the 31st of May, thou- sands of people gathered at the Taksim square to show soli-
darity to the demonstrators, who wanted to prevent the de- struction of one of the few green areas of the city center. The peacefull protests were supressed using police violence, soon making it clear for everyone, that it was no longer just about a few trees.
The gezi park became for the following three weeks a meet- ing point for various groups, that described themselves as neutral citizens that were generally unsatis ed with the cur- rent political situation. This led to the development of a plat- form that allowed people to meet and communicate.
The collective imagination, that one now calls Gezi spirit, introduced an individual language and presented itsself cre- ative and artistically in the public space.
It is not exaggerated to say, that the city dwellers discovered the public space through the Gezi protests. The streets and facades, that were given a voice through this process, were the communication means of the demonstants. The violent clearance of the park on the 16th of June, followed protests and open discussion fora in various parks and public spaces throughout the city. The social media played an important role in the expansion of these protests, as they often over- took the role of the mediator and opened a free and acces- sible platform for everyone. The whole process made clear the urgence for a new de nition of the public space, includ- ing social media and art.
The political authority proceeds with its intervetions in the city´s public spaces, thus threatening with its current plans the future ecological and social sustainability of the city. The construction of the third Bosporus bridge and the north
highway will destroy the last forests and water sources of the city. Academics talk about inevitable destruction of the equilibrium of the Marmara and Back Sea. The governement uses architecture as an isntrument for power games, while ignoring science and facts.
The right for involvement of the Chamber of Architects in projecst of public interest, was taken away within a night, as the union of the Chamber of Turkish Ingeneurs and Archi- tects (TMMOB) was engaged at the Gezi protests.This was a retrograde step for the evolution of urbanity and the de- velopment of a one-sided regime towards matters of public space.
This work is an effort to point out the con icts and differ- ences between seculars and conservatives in the matters of interventions in architecture and urban planning in the city. An effort to understand and analyze the cause and process of the protests, that begun as an opposition to the ecologi- cally destructive and greedy construction policy.
Through the analysis of the demographic pro le of the par- ticipants, one can see that the social, economic and cultural character of a place is an important factor for the formation of a political opinion. The importance of architecture as an irreplaceable component of the collective memory and the development of a sense of belonging, was once again made clear through these protests. They crystallized the fact, that an open and democratic city needs more and better com- munication and meeting possibilities instead of a strictly controlled and classi ed public space.

The Gezi protests, that aimed to prevent the reconstruction of the Topcu barracks on the site of the current Gezi park, were an indicator of the relation between architecture, soci- ology, politics and economy in the city of Istanbul. The big- gest civilian movement in the story of Turkey quickly took a political turn and expanded in other cities as well. The Gezi protests became a symbol for the right of a say of the citizens and is more or less now referred to as the Gezi resistance.
The feeling of despair, that apparently a lot of citizens were carrying, led me to the decision to focus on Istanbul´s urban planning problems for my diploma thesis. Istanbul, nowa- days on its way to becoming a global city, undergoes a series of transformation processes, that threaten the living quality of its 14 millions inhabitants. The neoliberal system gradu- ally widens the gap between rich and poor.
Their separate lifestyles allow no communication between the social classes. The decisions taken carry traces of an is- lamic conservative and neoliberal ideology, that dominates the city for the past 20 years and the whole country for the past 10 years. The election victory of the conservative party comes along with the demographic evolution of Istanbul and Turkey. Until the Gezi protests, my plan was to present a typical citizen pro le, using individual stories told in a spe- ci c chronological order. A citizen pro le that would bring out these gaps and problems. While being in the process, the Gezi protests begun and gave me the perfect example to explain and analyze the cause of the con ict.
On the fourth day of the protests, on the 31st of May, thou- sands of people gathered at the Taksim square to show soli-
darity to the demonstrators, who wanted to prevent the de- struction of one of the few green areas of the city center. The peacefull protests were supressed using police violence, soon making it clear for everyone, that it was no longer just about a few trees.
The gezi park became for the following three weeks a meet- ing point for various groups, that described themselves as neutral citizens that were generally unsatis ed with the cur- rent political situation. This led to the development of a plat- form that allowed people to meet and communicate.
The collective imagination, that one now calls Gezi spirit, introduced an individual language and presented itsself cre- ative and artistically in the public space.
It is not exaggerated to say, that the city dwellers discovered the public space through the Gezi protests. The streets and facades, that were given a voice through this process, were the communication means of the demonstants. The violent clearance of the park on the 16th of June, followed protests and open discussion fora in various parks and public spaces throughout the city. The social media played an important role in the expansion of these protests, as they often over- took the role of the mediator and opened a free and acces- sible platform for everyone. The whole process made clear the urgence for a new de nition of the public space, includ- ing social media and art.
The political authority proceeds with its intervetions in the city´s public spaces, thus threatening with its current plans the future ecological and social sustainability of the city. The construction of the third Bosporus bridge and the north
highway will destroy the last forests and water sources of the city. Academics talk about inevitable destruction of the equilibrium of the Marmara and Back Sea. The governement uses architecture as an isntrument for power games, while ignoring science and facts.
The right for involvement of the Chamber of Architects in projecst of public interest, was taken away within a night, as the union of the Chamber of Turkish Ingeneurs and Archi- tects (TMMOB) was engaged at the Gezi protests.This was a retrograde step for the evolution of urbanity and the de- velopment of a one-sided regime towards matters of public space.
This work is an effort to point out the con icts and differ- ences between seculars and conservatives in the matters of interventions in architecture and urban planning in the city. An effort to understand and analyze the cause and process of the protests, that begun as an opposition to the ecologi- cally destructive and greedy construction policy.
Through the analysis of the demographic pro le of the par- ticipants, one can see that the social, economic and cultural character of a place is an important factor for the formation of a political opinion. The importance of architecture as an irreplaceable component of the collective memory and the development of a sense of belonging, was once again made clear through these protests. They crystallized the fact, that an open and democratic city needs more and better com- munication and meeting possibilities instead of a strictly controlled and classi ed public space.

Protestbewegung/Gezipark/ Taksimm Platz