PROJECT DESCRIPTION / Context

Within the scope of the project, the students designed a residence for
an artist couple in the Umurbey Neighborhood, known as “Darağaç”, 
located behind the Izmir Port. Historical Electric Factory, Halkapınar 
Sümerbank Campuses are concentrated, different artists have been living, 
producing and exhibiting art in solidarity with the local people for the last 
5 years. The students were expected to bring creative suggestions to both the urban housing life and the transformation of the region through art. The art and design-oriented transformation in Darağaç, which was chosen as the project area, is an alternative to these gentrification-oriented urban transformation projects in other parts of the city. In this context, 
the students were asked to go beyond a simple housing design and design 
a collective life in a neighborhood that was new to contemporary art; It 
was expected that they would follow a critical process in which the social 
and cultural texture of the neighborhood was prioritized.