BirdYard / Betül Keles Ekici
Karahantepe will be able to serve as a new guide in understanding the Neolithic age. When we look at this environment and the settlements of that period, we see that people settled down and started to live in crowds due to the abundance of resources of hunter-gatherers who were constantly on the move. In fact, this change has been a driving force for hunter-gatherer societies to improve their skills. The fact that this community can use the opportunities offered by nature in the most effective way in harmony with nature has been my source of inspiration in my project. Natural limitations of the project area such as slope, wind direction, sun angle shaped the layout. It is a fiction intertwined with nature with the buildings placed at different levels using the slope and the inner courtyards created by the buildings surrounding them. Decks extending between the buildings will be used both to ensure circulation and to create open activity spaces where visitors spend time at the points where they expand, where the excavation team carries out their activities that require open air, as well as the workshops and meeting hall.
The settlement, which consists of 2 units separated according to activity and user, is divided into sub-units and creates 4 different meeting places. While the first units constitute the visitor center, which consists of information, exhibition venues, cafe, souvenirs, workshops, and a meeting hall, the other consists of studios, laboratories, accommodation units and common areas that generally appeal to the excavation team.
Main design approach was to use local architecture (by blending it with today's technology and making the most of the potential of the project area). For this reason, it was decided to use gypsum-added adobe (Alker) and masonry stone techniques in the project. Adobe is a material that can be used from the earliest times to the present day, is indispensable especially for rural areas, has the least cost, does not require the establishment of a facility, and has a high thermal insulation value. In addition, it is a completely recyclable material and does not contribute to the carbon footprint. At this point, the limits created by the material became a guiding element in the project and directed to establish a kind of museum village with relatively small, single-storey buildings.
In the part planned for the excavation team, a settlement with balconies and rooms opening to the courtyard was designed for the excavation team to be in touch with nature and to use local elements for social purposes. As the community integration center built in the middle of the courtyard, events and venues that will highlight the gastronomic culture of Urfa and the possibilities of the National Park in the area were designed. Communal garden and communal open-air kitchen were designed for the excavation team. Vegetables grown in the garden will be used in the production of local products such as red peppers and tomato paste, as well as gastronomic activities.
Visitors first enter the settlement from the parking lot and are greeted by a semi-open information area. After getting information and tickets, they go to the excavation area from the transfer area after visiting the 3 exhibition areas, namely Neolithic Age, Taş Tepeler and Karahantepe, and spending time in the courtyard according to their wishes. When they return from the excavation site, a souvenir and cafe welcome them. Those wishing to attend workshops or events are directed to another courtyard connected to the visitor center.
For the excavation team, the plot begins with the dining hall, which defines the entrance to the courtyard, and the semi-open space where they can take off their excavation clothes and wash their hands. The courtyard consists of the communal garden, open air communal kitchen and the accommodation units surrounding them. The corridors opening from the courtyard to the laboratory and studios have increased the interaction. The private garden created in the south and west of the courtyard was used both as a laundry courtyard and for sports events.
