{"id":687556,"date":"2026-05-22T15:14:12","date_gmt":"2026-05-22T15:14:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/687556\/"},"modified":"2026-05-22T15:14:12","modified_gmt":"2026-05-22T15:14:12","slug":"six-installations-from-the-inaugural-global-design-forum-istanbul","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/687556\/","title":{"rendered":"Six installations from the inaugural Global Design Forum Istanbul"},"content":{"rendered":"

An ancient room soaked entirely in red<\/a> and a plywood gateway based on a lost Roman arena were among the installations<\/a> erected across the Turkish capital for Global Design Forum Istanbul<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Global Design Forum is the talks platform of London Design Festival<\/a>, and for the first time last week, a special overseas edition was held at Istanbul’s historic Topkap\u0131 Palace complex.<\/p>\n

As part of the event, organised in collaboration with local creative platform People Places Ideas<\/a>, several temporary installations were built in public spots around the city.<\/p>\n

Under artistic direction from People Places Ideas founder Melek Zeynep Bulut, designers and architects were tasked with creating works in line with the enigmatic theme of Praise of Transience.<\/p>\n

Read on for more about the installations, most of which will stay in place until 7 June:<\/p>\n

\"Wall<\/p>\n

Wall\/Tribune\/Gate by Ali Derya Dosto\u011flu and U\u011fur \u00d6zer<\/p>\n

Placed outside the exit of the Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts overlooking a plaza and Istanbul’s famous Blue Mosque, this plywood installation was conceived as a subtle gesture towards the city’s multi-layered history.<\/p>\n

Its curved back draws on actual measurements of the chariot-racing track at the Roman-era Hippodrome that once stood here, while the gap through the middle recalls the entrance and exit gateways of ancient arenas.<\/p>\n

\"Yak\u00een<\/p>\n

Yak\u00een by YAKIN Kolektif, Nil Aynal\u0131, Furkan T\u00fcrky\u0131lmaz and Muhammed Arif Aksu<\/p>\n

This serene pavilion was devised by Marmara University<\/a> architecture professor Nil Aynal\u0131 and her students as an exploration of the concept of space through the prism of Islamic mysticism.<\/p>\n

Four metal posts support a simple flat roof, from which hangs a ring of gauzy lilac veils that constantly shift and flutter in the wind.<\/p>\n

Behind the veils is a layer of much heavier, grey curtains. Pushing through those reveals a mirrored, brightly lit box at the core of the pavilion \u2013 an unexpected confrontation with oneself.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

The Red Room by NUN Architecture and People Places Ideas<\/p>\n

The venue for Global Design Forum Istanbul’s talks programme was an installation in its own right.<\/p>\n

Translucent red tulle was slung down the walls and across the top of an open-air atrium in the seventh-century Hagia Irene church, creating an intimate, dreamlike atmosphere and washing the space in an ochre glow.<\/p>\n

The chairs were specially designed for the event and are made from a handful of pieces of Turkish plywood held together by interlocking joinery. They have been donated to various institutions across Istanbul following the forum.<\/p>\n

\"Oblique<\/p>\n

Oblique Land by Alper Derinbo\u011faz and Salon Architects<\/p>\n

Sitting on the banks of the Bosphorus in the grounds of a high school, this structure is somewhere between a staircase and a platform.<\/p>\n

It mirrors the topology of the hills on the other side of the water and is designed to be clambered on for a better view, but architect Alper Derinbo\u011faz<\/a> admitted it is “not the least risky public structure”.<\/p>\n

\"Patterns<\/p>\n

Patterns of Possibilities V2 by Canda\u015f \u015ei\u015fman<\/p>\n

Every six minutes and 39 seconds, this screen starts drawing a pattern composed of different configurations of white dots, accelerating as it goes.<\/p>\n

A drum sound corresponds to each dot configuration, creating a percussive crescendo as the pattern unfolds. Once the screen is full, it resets and begins again, with the pattern different every cycle.<\/p>\n

According to digital artist Canda\u015f \u015ei\u015fman<\/a>, the installation is an invitation for the observer to reflect on probability, coincidence, order and chaos.<\/p>\n

\"Pavilion<\/p>\n

Pavilion of the Moment by Waugh Thistleton Architects<\/a><\/p>\n

On the lawns outside the Hagia Irene, this timber pavilion by London studio\u00a0Waugh Thistleton Architects<\/a> gives the impression of being midway through dissolving.<\/p>\n

And while from the outside its lattice walls form a cube, the space inside is more spherical, in a nod to the clever geometry of the Byzantine-era landmark.<\/p>\n

The photography is by Mark Cocksedge.<\/p>\n

Global Design Forum Istanbul<\/a> took place at the Topkap\u0131 Palace, Istanbul, Turkey from 13-16 May 2026, with installations across the city. Visit Dezeen Events Guide<\/a>\u00a0for more architecture and design events around the world.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"An ancient room soaked entirely in red and a plywood gateway based on a lost Roman arena were…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":687557,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[61914,449,458,459,64,63,460,134,331177,329505,15942,41073,5310,61745,61746,62006,940],"class_list":["post-687556","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-arts-and-design","tag-architecture-and-design-events","tag-arts","tag-arts-and-design","tag-artsanddesign","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-design","tag-entertainment","tag-global-design-forum","tag-global-design-forum-istanbul","tag-installations","tag-istanbul","tag-roundups","tag-sectionall","tag-sectionarchitecture","tag-sectiondesign","tag-turkey"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/687556","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=687556"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/687556\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/687557"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=687556"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=687556"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=687556"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}