Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
Situated Ecologies of Care: The 20th AHRA International Conference, Portsmouth, İngiltere, 25 - 27 Ekim 2023, ss.91-92
Understanding the profound connection between humans and non-human entities, such as buildings and architecture, requires us to acknowledge these objects' value and agency. Through two elective courses held synchronously, the authors focused on this interconnectedness by exploring the concept of "care." These courses, namely "Image Construction and Architectural Photography" and "ARCH 554 Architectures of the Photographic Environment," emphasized the role of architectural photography as an act of care-taking and positioned the students as caretakers of the built environment through extensive photographic research and documentation.
The courses aimed to move beyond perceiving buildings and artifacts solely as functional objects or aesthetic expressions. Instead, they encouraged students to recognize them as possessing unique qualities and influencing the environment and human experience. With over a decade of experience as architects and active agents in architectural education and visual research, the authors used their photographic practices and pedagogical experiments to establish a foundation for discussing this educational experience. Through photography, the authors advocated for establishing intimate bonds between architecture students and architectural artifacts, considering them as "companion species," in the words of Donna Haraway.
As an integral part of this pedagogical approach, long-term photographic revisits not only documented the passage of time and its impact on buildings but also portrayed the students' evolving perception and emotional experience. The aim was to create a dialogue between the students and the bodies of buildings and to capture "situated knowledge" before these structures were demolished or ceased to exist, especially in the context of Turkiye's centennial anniversary and the endangered architectural heritage it holds. To publicly communicate their ideas and foster photographic dialogues and storytelling by the students, the authors curated an exhibition, which provided a medium for the students to display photographic dialogues and perform storytelling, sharing their insights and experiences.