Panel, Good Design İzmir 9
November 7, 2024, 17:00
Kültürpark Atlas Pavilion
Moderator: Burkay Pasin, Architect, Academic
Speakers:
Meltem Eranıl, Interior Architect, Academic
Çiçek Tezer, Architect and Cultural Manager
Can Aysan, Industrial Designer
One of the panel’s starting points is the age-old issue of dialogue between designer and user—an intrinsic component of the design act at a conceptual level. Building upon this issue, the panel expands the discussion to an urban scale, aiming to explore the problematic nature of communication between decision-makers and city dwellers in spatial design practices related to the city. This (lack of) dialogue will be addressed particularly in the context of İzmir, focusing on residential and public space design—key areas of urban design application. While the Coastal Design project implemented in İzmir stands out as an example of good design, there remains a critical debate around how the city’s “Design City” identity is reflected in state-sponsored housing projects and urban transformation efforts carried out in collaboration with private capital. It is essential to bring into discussion the current and upcoming urban design processes that İzmir is undergoing—processes which, beyond their social impact, are inevitably political. The panel underscores the importance of evaluating these developments in relation to the city’s existing design culture.
