Architecture, ideology, representation : party headquarters as a new mode in representing power since the 1980’s

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2009
Yılmaz, Fadime
The main objective of this study is to question the potential of architecture as a representational medium of ideology. In order to exemplify this overlapping relationship between ideology and architecture, this study focuses on the headquarters erected by major parties of Turkey since the 1980’s. Having a significant position within society and particularly being a part of political system, parties obviously define ideological formations in order to preserve their existence and also strengthen their position within society and the material existence of architecture is manipulated by the parties as an important tool for representation. Thus these headquarters, which are certainly virile tools in the process of aesthetization of ideology, constitute a model to comprehend this relation of architecture and power. All buildings concerned are erected after 1980 which marks another objective of this study. The ongoing period after 1980 under the influence of Neoliberalism offers substantial changes in political, social and economic domains in worldwide scale. Obviously, political agents in Turkey were also forced to experience such significant changes and redefined their ideological formations. Thus, these buildings can be considered as the concrete example of how architecture responded the newly emerging need refined due the neoliberal changes. Departing from that, the aim of this thesis can be defined as to discuss the role of the work of architecture in the representation of ideology, but also to question to what extend the alterations in this potential of representation has initiated by the changes brought by Neoliberalism. Lastly, the study will discuss the results of these changes within the sphere of ideology of architecture in order to map the transformation occurred within. This study will finally question what kind of transformations within the sphere of ideology of architecture has been triggered by the above mentioned changes.

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Citation Formats
F. Yılmaz, “Architecture, ideology, representation : party headquarters as a new mode in representing power since the 1980’s,” M.Arch. - Master of Architecture, Middle East Technical University, 2009.