Talk focuses on the ancient signs of Ottoman heritage

ANKARA

Salt Ankara is hosting a talk by architectural restorator Emre Madran.

The Ali Saim Ülgen Archive at Salt Ankara is hosting a talk by architectural restoration expert Emre Madran about Ottoman heritage in Turkish cities as part of its continuing exhibition titled Modern Turkey’s Discovery of Ottoman Heritage today.

Cities are transformed to meet the changing and diversifying needs of society through the development of architectural styles or due to other reasons, such as a failure to preserve foundational buildings or natural disasters.

The process embodies the loss of cultural values in the bid to create new ones. In his talk, Madran will focus on the design and construction of public buildings in Ankara’s Ulus neighborhood and its surroundings after the 1920s. He will evaluate both the loss of former buildings to “public works,” as well as the renovation of the first Republican buildings in terms of their destruction or renovation beyond recognition.

Madran previously worked for the Foundations Directorate and the Culture Ministry and currently teaches part-time in the Restoration Department of Architecture Faculty of Middle East Technical University (ODTÜ). His research focuses on the history of conservation in the Ottoman and Republican period, and includes specialties such as traditional construction materials.