Architecture In Turkey Research Articles

Türkiye ve Endonezya’da Camilerin Mekân Özellikleri Açısından Karşılaştırmalı Olarak İncelenmesi

This study aims to compare the spatial features of mosques in Turkey and Indonesia, both predominantly Muslim countries. The introduction provides a general definition of religion and highlights the significance of religious structures. It explains that religion is a belief system and emphasizes the importance of religious structures for societies. The formation and development of religious buildings often rely on sacred texts, rituals, moral principles, and societal rules. Mosques are significant religious spaces where Muslims gather for collective worship. They contribute significantly to areas such as culture, architecture, and art. However, this study scrutinizes and reviews the differences and similarities in the design, implementation, and use of mosques in Turkey and Indonesia, taking into account academic studies on the subject. In both countries, mosques are built in two different styles: Classical and modern. The study examines well-known mosques in Turkey, including the Sultan Ahmet Mosque and the Suleymaniye Mosque (classical style) and the Şakirin Mosque and the Sancaklar Mosque (modern style). The study includes classical style mosques such as the Al Mahsun Grand Mosque and the Baiturrahman Grand Mosque, as well as modern style mosques like the Istiqlal Mosque and the Babuttaqwa Utama Mosque in Indonesia. These mosques were chosen as prominent examples based on the time periods they were built, their purposes of construction, their current uses, and their impact on their respective contexts. Although there have been numerous academic studies on mosque architecture in Turkey and Indonesia, there is a lack of literature that comparatively examines mosque architecture formation in the context of cultural and spatial differences between these two cultures. This gap highlights the importance of the current study.

The Perception of Spatial Atmosphere in Traditional and Modern Mosques in Aesthetic Context

The concept of aesthetic has been transformed and re-contextualized through the consecutive centuries to find a stable place in the discipline of architecture. We may claim that the stability has been generally provided by spaces having the power of affecting its experiencers emotionally by the help of sensory perception. The discipline of phenomenology set the theoretical scene for such experience quality in architectural spaces, which can be analyzed in historical, social, and religious contexts.
 In this framework, the article aims to emphasize the significance of the relationship between the disciplines of aesthetics and architecture in Turkey through the aesthetic image of the spatial atmosphere via the evaluations of experiencers of the mosques in traditional and modern styles to comprehend the image of aesthetic experience. Methodologically, the analysis is based on an online questionnaire to understand the perceptual differences of the survey participants based on the image of aesthetic experience in these two different mosque styles. In conclusion, the Sancaklar and Selimiye Mosques show that, although the experiencers were open to the new concepts in contemporary mosque designs, their religious teachings with the traditionalist background generally prevent them adopting the Sancaklar Mosque. Thus, the majority of the survey participators preferred to visit and pray in the Selimiye Mosque as the masterpiece of the Ottoman style while the Sancaklar Mosque reflecting the modern approach was found insufficient to manifest the traditional Islamic language that the survey participators are accustomed to.

The Art Déco Influence in the Modern Turkish Architecture of the Early Republican Period

With the proclamation of the Republic, Atatürk, the founder of Modern Turkey, wanted a new model of politics that would bring about the establishment of the “nation state”, also symbolized by architecture. Having decided to make a transition to modern architecture in Turkey, Atatürk invited academics from Germany and Vienna to achieve this. Consequently, by the 1930s, architecture followed a functionalistrationalist path in both public buildings and in residences. Another architectural style that wielded a lot of influence on the trends in the Modern Movement in this period was Art Déco. The plastic effect of mass in Art Déco was accompanied by purism. The purpose of th is article is to explore the characteristics of the Art Déco style in modern Turkish architecture, tracing it back to the 1930s, the time when a culture of architecture first began to form in Turkey, as Art Déco, in combination with rationalism, proved to be an influential force in Republican Turkey. The effect of this style on the composition of structural masses shall be described through examples of public and residential buildings. At the same time, an attempt shall be made to explore the connotations of contemporaneity, progress, technology, and industry as expressed in the vocabulary of the Republican ideology that embraced the mass aesthetic of the formal style that was Art Déco.

Between Education & Profession: An Evaluation of Graduation Projects in the Field of Interior Architecture in Turkey

Design studios are at the core of architecture, interior architecture, or design education. Different design problems are experienced and solved in these studios every term or year. The last step of the design studios is the graduation/degree project, which is characteristic of a threshold between education and profession. The scope of the study is to examine the graduation/degree projects’ approaches of the schools that are providing interior architecture education in Turkey and to evaluate their project outputs. Thus, quantitative analyses and qualitative evaluations have been made on the documents of the MEKAN/İç Mimarlık Öğrencileri Ulusal Bitirme Projeleri Yarışması (Interior Design Students National Graduation Projects Competition), which are served as an important archive. In this respect, within the scope of the study, an inventory has been tried to be put forward by evaluating the competition processes through the participant projects between 2012-2021. Firstly, an analysis has been made on the numerical distribution of all the participant projects according to the years and the diversity of the participating schools. Then, more detailed analyses have been carried out on the award-winning projects by narrowing the sample group. In addition, developments in the matters of the perspectives of different schools on design problems, their proposals for solutions, their design representations, etc. have been brought to light. As researchers and educators, it has been tried to open a way for how interior architecture education to reconstruct itself in the future, by rethinking the education itself.

Incorporating United Nations 2030 Sustainable Future Agenda into the Architectural Studio: A Graduation Studio Case

AbstractUnited Nations (UN) released the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in 2015. This agenda has received attention from various disciplines and sectors globally; partnerships from private and public sectors were formed to play a role in this challenging ambitious plan. However, architectural education and professional organisations in Turkey have not been strongly engaged with the agenda in particular. To meet this gap and create synergy, this paper aims at presenting pedagogical paths followed in a graduation studio, integrating the studio outcomes with UN 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which have not been widely covered either in nationwide architectural education or professional policies. In addition, the paper focuses on how the SDG action plan is echoed in higher education as well as in the discipline of architecture in Turkey. The paper is a case study in architectural education of which the motivation is to create awareness about UN SDGs among the students; to give insights and demonstrate a realistic design policy to achieve development targets. The pedagogical path presented here is original and aims to fulfill an interlude in the literature, which is still emerging. The case presentation includes the process and the results with a sufficient number of student projects as outcomes of the studio.

Between Bureaucratic Tradition and Professional Discourse: Turkey and the Case of SİSAG, 1969–77

ABSTRACTThe history of twentieth-century architecture in Turkey can be presented as a conflict between a powerful state bureaucracy and an independent architectural community: the former producing most of the buildings and infrastructure but with little verbalisation; the latter producing most of the discourse but building relatively little. This article examines a case that challenges this dichotomy. It focuses on the architectural department of SİSAG (1969–77), a company associated with Hacettepe University in Ankara, and the organisational, institutional and occupational modes and practices that it employed. The article explores both the architectural production of SİSAG and its role as the setting for the first white-collar strike in Turkey, and it unearths the intellectual and institutional discourse on the organisation of architectural production that surfaced with this confrontation. The article shows how, in the relationship between bureaucratic tradition and professional discourse, SİSAG took an ‘in-between’ position, its architects seeking to replace conflict with cooperation, and to reconcile ideas of public service, public interest and social engagement on the one hand with disciplinary knowledge, planning and design and independent research on the other.

DEPREM MEVZUATI BAĞLAMINDA TÜRKİYE’DEKİ GELENEKSEL AHŞAP KARKAS YAPI KURALLARININ ANALİZİ

Türkiye’de ahşap yapıların geleneksel mimaride önemli bir yeri olduğu bilinmektedir. Özellikle Osmanlı döneminde inşa edilen konutların çoğunluğu ahşap karkas yapıdır. Bu dönemde, depremlerde yaşanan tecrübeler sonucunda ahşap yapı kullanımı ön plana çıkmıştır. Geleneksel ahşap karkas yapıların depreme karşı yeterli dayanım gösterebildikleri bilinmektedir. Ancak depremlerde bu yapılar da zarar görmüştür. Depremlerde zarar görenler, genelde eksik ve hatalı yapılardır. Bu bağlamda Türkiye’de yayımlanan dokuz deprem mevzuatında geleneksel ahşap karkas yapı kurallarına yer verilmiş ve birçok deprem mevzuatında zararların önlenmesi için yeni kurallar getirilmiştir. Bu çalışmanın amacı, geleneksel ahşap karkas yapılardaki deprem hasarları ve hasarlara karşı alınan önlemlerle deprem mevzuatı arasındaki ilişkinin belirlenmesidir. Ayrıca geleneksel ahşap karkas yapılar konusunda farklı bir hafıza oluşturulması hedeflenmektedir. Çalışmada, üç adımdan oluşan bir araştırma yöntemi kullanılmaktadır.

Notas de un proyecto de archivo: la construcción del archivo privado de un arquitecto en Turquía

<p class="p1">Este artículo se centra en un proyecto de archivo, conducido por la Asociación de Arquitectos 1927 en Ankara, sobre una de las figuras principales de la arquitectura moderna en Turquía, el arquitecto Nejat Ersin (1924-2010). La realización de estudios de investigación sobre su vida y sus obras ha estado en la agenda desde 2013, cuando la Asociación trasladó su oficina principal al bloque lecorbusiano de viviendas que Ersin había diseñado. En abril de 2017, su esposa donó sus documentos profesionales y personales a la Asociación. Después de que ella falleció, sus familiares proporcionaron material adicional de archivo en enero de 2018. Los documentos y proyectos recogidos a través de las donaciones, tomados en conjunto, requirieron rediseñar los estudios previstos en 2013. A partir de ello, se discute la construcción del archivo privado de un arquitecto en el contexto de la historiografía arquitectónica.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p>

An Analysis on the Ministry of Health Building in the Early Republican Era

Başkent Ankara’da, Bakanlık yapıları, siyasi gücün temsiliyetini üstlenen sembolik yapılardır. Cumhuriyetin ilanının ardından inşa süreci başlayan bu yapılar günümüz Ankara’sında halen varlığını sürdürmektedir. Yapıların bazıları inşa edildiği tarihten bu yana aynı işleve hizmet ederken bazıları ise farklı işlevlere devredilmiş veya boşaltılmıştır. Araştırma kapsamında Erken Cumhuriyet döneminde inşa edilen ve dönemi konu edinen araştırmalarda ilk “modern” yapı olarak karşımıza çıkan Sağlık Bakanlığı binası ele alınmaktadır. Yapı, Cumhuriyet döneminde inşa edilen ilk modern yapı olarak anılsa da mevcut yazında yapıya ilişkin detaylı bir araştırma bulunmamaktadır. Çalışma hem bu duruma dikkat çekmeyi hem de yapının mevcut durumunu, Modern Mimarlık Mirası’nın korunmasına ilişkin yazın kapsamında, tartışmayı amaçlamaktadır. Avusturyalı mimar Theodor Jost tarafından tasarlanan yapı hem mimari üslup bakımından Uluslararası mimarinin Türkiye’deki ilk örneği olması hem de 90 yılı aşan geçmişiyle önemli bir değerdir. Kültürel ve tarihi belleğin sürdürülebilmesi adına modern mimari yapıların korunarak geleceğe aktarılması önem arz etmektedir. Bu amaçla yapının 2009 yılında geçirdiği yenileme projeleri ile birlikte mevcut iç mekânı değerlendirmeye alınmış ve bu veriler uluslararası tüzük ve anlaşmalarda öne çıkan noktalar doğrultusunda belirlenen ölçütler çerçevesinde irdelenmiştir.

Conserving Modern Architectural Heritage: Review on First Numune Hospitals of Turkey

Purpose The new political approaches followed after the establishment of republic transformed the basic characteristics of many different dynamics in Turkey ranging from education and industry to art and architecture. The arrangements related to health services hold an important place among these fields and the great transformations seen in healthcare services necessitated the construction of hospital buildings with contemporary architectural qualities. In this framework, new hospital buildings known as “Numune” (Sample) Hospitals were established in Ankara, Diyarbakir, Erzurum and Sivas cities in 1924 to be good examples for further hospital buildings. In this context, the historical evolutions, architectural characteristics and current situations of these Numune hospitals are examined in this study together with an analysis of all the changes and interventions they were exposed to from past to present. This study aims to clarify the historical importance of Numune hospitals in question, address the changes they have undergone to date, criticize the interventions in the context of architectural history and conservation disciplines, and put forward various suggestions related to such disciplines. The search of the ways to provide the interrelationship of these buildings with the rapidly evolving current world by referring to the contemporary methods of different disciplines, constitutes one other basic aim of this study. The applications of the public authority of health services; namely the -Ministry of Health- and the other efficient dynamics related with the conservation of these buildings are also critically evaluated with respect to their roles on the sustaining of the architectural and historial values of these buildings. Design/Methodology/Approach The problems in preserving the original characteristics and showing respect to the historical values of these buildings are discussed by using the instruments and concepts of architectural history and conservation disciplines. Besides, some strategies are proposed for the preservation of these buildings with an awareness of the current conditions of health services in Turkey, and the possibility of the conflict between today’s conservation practices and health facility standards. Findings Taking into account contemporary approaches and the advanced conservation techniques being employed today, this study indicates that it is possible to make use of these structures by transforming their functions and maintaining their authentic values through proper applications. It is also expressed that a well-defined framework regarding that which structures are to be conserved according to which criteria could not be created, and that the decision-making mechanism focused solely on the conservation of the oldest structures. Practical Implications Some refunctioning and remediation strategies are presented for conserving the historical values of these Numune hospitals, while also improving their conditions as far as possible. Social Implications The concepts of heritage and value should be defined in a broader contextual framework and conservation principles should be revised according to these definitions. Originality/Value Considering these buildings serve as cultural bridges extending from the Ottoman era to the present and have important places in the historical development of healthcare facility architecture in Turkey, they hold symbolic values within the context of Turkish architectural history and heritage.

Six-Pointed Star Motif in Muslim Architecture of Bangladesh (Past Bengal) and Turkish Influence: An Historical Study

With the rise of Islamic states as the dominant powers of India and Indian Sub- Continent (India, Pakistan and Bangladesh) and South Asia Sultanate and Mughal period (1200-1800 A.D.), by Turkish heroic figure (horsemen), Indian art was subjected to Islamic influence, resulting in a hybrid aesthetics as well as Indo- Islamic art which flourished to varying extends across south and southeast Asia. Bangladesh is world third largest Muslim majority country and situated in South Asia. So the main and primary identity of the notion is mosque architecture and then languages via culture in Bangladesh (past Bengal). Moreover, Traditional history called Mughal and ottoman was the center of all traders and referred as the “Middle Man” due to access to water routes between Asia and Europe. The Ottoman and Mughal Empires were all founded with art and architecture by members of the same ethnically Turkic tribe and originated from Oghuz tribe. Firstly, in the early 14th century, Osman Bey established a small principality in the northeast corner of Anatolia. Despite these many similarities, there are some key difference within the approach to Islamic Art and Architecture from Miniatures Illustrations in Indian Sub-Continent to Mosque architecture in Turkey and the Levant the Mughal and Ottoman empires left their indications.Turkish Military Ikhtiyar Uddin bin Muhammad Bhaktiyer Khilji and his Turkish followers captured Bengal in 1204 A.D. and after then ruled by Turkic. Besides these many Sufis saint-like Khan Jahan Ulugh Khan, Burhan Khan, Gharib Shah, came here and spread Islam and Turkish culture with languages too. The Ilyas Shahi dynasty was the first independent Turkic Muslim ruling dynasty in late medieval Bengal, which ruled from the 14th century to the 15th century. It was founded in 1342 by Shamsuddin Iliyas Shah. As follows still presence many Turkish words which used in the Bengali language as Barood, Nishan, Chaku, Bahadur, Begum, Chadar, Surma, bavarchi, kiyma, Korma, and so on. And then showed their power through art and architecture as Mosques and Tombs follows Adina Masjid at Pandua in 1368 A.D.; Eklakhi mausoleum, Pandua; Tomb of Shah Rukn-e Alam in Multan, Sixty Domed Mosque at Bagherhat of Bangladesh, etc. Based on all evidence present, it can be found that the Turks contributed significantly to Bengali languages and culture as well as art and architecture (Mosques and Tombs). Besides many Jewish people came in here through missionary and business purposes. And also we see that there have been found many designs in mosque architecture especially six-point stars which is mentioned as a David symbol. So my focus is the Connectivity between Turkish and Bangladesh through Islamic architecture and Jewish with six point star/hexagon/seal of Solomon. It is a historical study with a journalistic approach.

A SCREENING STUDY ABOUT DOCTORATE AND PROFICIENCY IN ARTS THESIS IN THE FIELD OF INTERIOR ARCHITECTURE

In this study, aimed to investigate the doctorate and proficiency in arts thesis which was done in the field of interior architecture in Turkey. First stage, in the context of this purpose, doctorate and proficiency in arts thesis in the field of interior architecture which accessible from YÖK National Thesis Center were analyzed according to permission status, the types, the years, the university and the institute. In the second stage, the content of the thesis studies (methods, data collection tools and subjects) were evaluted by classifying the according to the information of the thesis (type, year, university and institute). Descriptive survey model was chosen as the method of study. The findings obtained from the analysis are important in terms of revealing the status and trends of the field of interior architecture.

A Contemporary Interpretation of Vernacular Architecture. The Architecture of Nail Çakirhan, Turkey

Abstract As a product of native masters of the vernacular and the accumulation of thousands of years of tradition, local architecture embodies the physical and sociocultural characteristics of the environment of which it is a part. This is an indigenous architecture that displays the character of multiple and unknown local contributors and openly reflects the traditions, culture, experience and customs of the people it serves. Vernacular architecture differs according to the physical conditions of each region, becoming an expression of the culture of that area. Underlying it is the ancient wisdom, experience, skills and mastery that is transferred from generation to generation. The vernacular in architecture is the direct and unconscious translation of a society’s culture into physical substance within the framework of specified needs. It draws from tradition and with time, provides a social and cultural documentation that is passed on from one generation to the next. The aim of the study is to examine the residential works of the self-taught architect Nail Çakırhan, one of the most adamant defenders of vernacular architecture in Turkey and a recipient of the Aga Khan award in 1983, in the context of the house he built for himself using the local architectural materials of the region of Ula, where he was born, and the residential buildings he created in Akyaka, in an attempt to analyze Çakırhan’s contemporary interpretation of local architecture.

Environmental Literacy: An Assessment and Evaluation on the Students of Landscape Architecture in Turkey

Environmental literacy approach, in recent years, become one of the fundamental requirements proposed for a sustainable future in higher education. Environmental literacy is the total of individual comprehension, ability, attitude and habits which are constantly in progress and it is based on that short and long term attitudes and behaviors are developed by his sustainable communication with other people and biosphere. This study aims to evaluate the environmental consciousness, knowledge and skills of the students of landscape architecture in terms of environmental literacy. As data collection tool was used Environmental Literacy Scale where the knowledge of students about environmental legislation, knowledge and behaviors is questioned. The findings reveal that students have a very limited environmental knowledge and fulfill their environmental responsibilities on an individual basis in a very restricted area. In this regard, the study, based on the research results, makes suggestions for training environmentally literate candidates in professional training of environmental by emphasizing that students of Landscape Architecture would be of low efficiency in finding creative solutions for environmental, societal and spatial problems and producing sustainable landscape since their participation is very limited in societal and mass activities.

Mapping theory: Production of knowledge in theory of architecture in Turkey

Mapping theory: Production of knowledge in theory of architecture in Turkey

Türkiye’de Mimarlığın Emek Süreçlerini Yeniden Tartışmak

This paper aims to discuss how “the discourse of creative labor” is being reproduced as an apparatus of exploitation in the architectural labor processes of twenty-first-century Turkey through “architect-workers.” The discourse of creative labor has deepened the exploitation of architect-workers, as all workers, and defines the very privileged position of architect-boss in relation to other laborers. This exploitation became visible both in Turkey and worldwide through the comments of architects—who are both bosses of their architecture firms and so-called starchitects— about their own positions and practices. In addition, twenty-first-century architecture in Turkey can be criticized for the increasing precarity that has stemmed from the processes of yapsatcilik and mega-projects. To cope with this exploitation, “the discourse of creative labor” can also be reproduced by architect-workers. Consequently, this paper aims to provide ground on which to problematize the architect-worker as a member of the working class, as well as in the context of a discourse on creative labor and its exploitative use in the labor processes of architecture.

A review of doctoral dissertations in architecture in Turkey

The social and scientific importance of doctoral dissertations have increased in the context of Mission Differentiation and Specialization Project in Turkey and potential doctoral studies should be carefully conducted with the aim of contribution to community development, policies, science and practice area through the envisaged research fields.The purpose of this study is to examine doctoral dissertations in architecture in the academic literature within the scope of Thesis Center of the Council of Higher Education and to reveal the researchers’ profile with a view to contributing to the evolving research agenda in Turkey. For this purpose quantitative analyses of doctoral dissertations in Architecture in Turkey is made. The universe of the study constitutes 1170 doctoral dissertations completed between 1990-2018, which are archived in the database of the Thesis Center of the Council of Higher Education and indexed under the subject architecture. All of the doctoral dissertations included in the sample were analyzed using various standards such as the years they were completed, the language they were written in, the university they were completed in, the gender of the author, and the advisor’s title. The collected data was analyzed with descriptive statistical methods. According to the results, it was found out that the highest number of dissertations produced was in the architectural design discipline, by mostly female researchers, with dissertation supervisors who were mostly professors, while Turkish was the most used language and Istanbul Technical University was the institution where most of the dissertations were produced. The results coming out of this study will be helpful to the increase of research activities in the field of architecture in Turkey, to train researchers in universities in required fields, to direct scientific research in the right way and to contribute to the vision setting activities of universities.

Identity and ideology in 20th Century of Turkish Architecture

Examining the architectural actions, Turcs that have founded many states throughout the history are observed to have maintained the transfer of their culture, which has been shaped with different dinamics such as regime, ethnic diversity, geography, religion and has followed a natural flow even though factors has changed from time to time, to the early 20 th century. The 20 th century of Turkish architecture has come to a point where it serves to the efforts of creating a new identity that has strayed from its natural line as a result of an ideological movement worldwide. Even though the movement that was expressed as the National Renaissance of Turkish architecture and demostrated its impact on public buildings during its period has later been called National Style, given its starting point, architectural components and referances, how accurate it is to be called national is open to debate. In this study, the First National Architectural Movement and the Second National Architectural Movement that have impact on the early 20 th century particularly are dealt with in terms of identity issues and ideological approaches of Neo-Classical Architecture inTurkey.

Early Period of Modern Architecture in Turkey – A Case Study of Eskisehir

Modern architecture in the Western World bore fruit at the beginning of the 20th Century in consequence of the process of modernity and seeking of the proper architecture for it. It was formed firstly towards the end of the 1920s. The main reason of this nonsynchronous development was the inadequacy of enlightenment and industrial revolution during the Ottoman Empire and the lack of formation of an intellectual infrastructure which provides the basis of modernity. However, the Ottoman Westernization occurring in the 19th century constituted the foundations of the Republic modernity founded in 1923. The earliest modern architectural designs in Turkey were first practised by European architects after the foundation of the Republic and internalised and practised extensively by the native architects afterwards. The early modern architecture of Turkey, named as “1930s Modernism”, continued until the beginning of the World War II. This period was formed in between the periods of first and second nationalist architecture movements. The early modern architecture period of Turkey was a period which high-quality designs were made. It was practised and internalised not only in big cities such as Ankara and in Istanbul, but also in the medium and small cities of the country. This situation was not just about a formal exception but about the internalisation of modernity by the society. Eskisehir is one of the most important pioneering cities of the Republic period in terms of industrial and educational developments. The earliest modern buildings were built as the public buildings by the state and non-citizen architects in the inadequate conditions of the country in terms of economy and professional people. The earliest modern houses of the city designed by these architects were the prototypes for the later practices which offered the citizens a new lifestyle. The modern houses were the symbols of prestige and status for the owners and the dwellers. The features of early modern buildings of Eskisehir as a medium-size city of Turkey will be examined in this study within the scope of the early modern architectural period of Turkey.

Evaluation of the Conservation of Modern Architectural Heritage through Ankara’s Public Buildings

This paper evaluates the approach to the field of modern architecture in Turkey through the public buildings of Ankara. Although the conservation of modern architecture as cultural heritage has been accepted, to a limited degree, within related frameworks and disciplines, and within theory, the inconsistency in preservation legislations have been evaluated critically. The scope of conservation is limited to the state of being old and historical, thereby rendering modern architecture not worth conserving. This is valid for many countries, just like it is for Turkey. Despite various local interpretations of the mode of modern architecture that foresees mono-typing, the connotations of “culture” and the state of being a “product of the past,” of the 20th century, are denied. The expanding and transforming characteristic of immovable cultural heritage is disregarded. As such, modern architecture in Turkey remains inadequately analyzed and documented within the framework of cultural heritage. The conservation of buildings dating back to the 20th century remains within the preference of the related Ministry. As the criteria for this preference is not determined, some public buildings that exemplify modern architecture are rapidly lost despite their being of the same style and period with other buildings designated for conservation. The threat of being torn down or destroyed due to aging functionally and physically renders the preservation of modern architecture products within the framework of cultural heritage, as well as the updating of the legal context according to new parameters, urgent and necessary. The sustenance of public buildings, which are not only products of modern architecture but also sources of the history of the city and architecture, and therefore the history of the Republic in Turkey and the modernization process, gains even more significance through its impact on the urban identity of the capital, Ankara. To this end, this paper focuses on the city of Ankara for its case study on the present status of sustaining modern architectural heritage.