Mavi Boncuk
Emin Halid Onat (b.Istanbul 1908 d. Istanbul 1961)
Turkish architect and educator.After completing his studies at Vefa Sultan School he began his architectural studies at the School of Engineering in 1926. His extraordinary success enabled him to finish his education in his third year there and, having become a lecturer at the same institution, he was chosen to go as its representative to Zurich Technical College (ETH) where he worked under Otto Rudolf Salvisberg (1882-1940), one of the leading exponents of Modern Architecture.
On completing his architectural studies there he returned to Turkey in 1934. In 1935 he became Prof. Debbe's assistant and started work in the Architectural Department of the School of Engineering. His first year there passed in conflicts between him and the older professors whose conservatism made them dislike his teaching methods. In the end he triumphed and became professor and head of the Architectural Department in 1938. When, in 1944, the School was reorganized as Istanbul Technical University (ITU), Emin Onat became the first Dean of the newly-established Faculty of Architecture. In 1946 he was elected an honorary member of the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA).
In 1948 he set up the Turkish branch of the International Union of Architects (UIA) and represented Turkey at its general meeting in Lausanne. From 1951 to1953 he was Rector of the University after which, in 1954, he was elected a Member of Parliament for Istanbul. In 1956 he was awarded an honorary doctorate by Hannover Technical University. In 1957 he returned to his post at the university but was forced to resign from this on 27 October 1960, together with 147 other university lecturers. He died eight months later. In 1935 Onat entered the international design competition for the Istanbul Theatre and Conservatory with what may be called his first working design under the pseudonym Funktionell ( Functional). With Sedad Hakki Eldem, who defended the idea of International Architecture, he designed buildings such as the Science and Literature Faculty of Istanbul University (1944), and the Ankara University Science Faculty (1947) which display a historical influencece in their proportions.
In the period following the end of World War II he designed, again with Eldem, the Courts of Justice in Istanbul (1949) which marked the recognition of international influence and the movement towards Rationalism/Functionalism in design.
Works constructed in Ankara in the 1950s include the Cenap And House in Kavaklidere and the Presidential Palace Secreteriat and General Security Headquarters at Cankaya (1956) which, like his later works, give expression to local architectural features and are examples of his understanding, without exaggerating, the importance of the organic unity of interior space in his use of plain prismatic forms. Among Onat's other works may be cited the Istanbul Passenger Concourse (Karakoy), Uludag Sanatorium (1946; with Leman Tomsu ), Bursa Governor's Mansion (1945-46) and the IBM Headquarters in Istanbul (1961, Gumussuyu) Onat's most important design, realised in collaboration with Orhan Arda, was that for Ataturk's Mausoleum (1942-53).
Differing from others in the competition, rather than using the model of stylized kumbet or tomb, Ataturk's Mausoleum makes great use of an approach used in Anatolian architecture in ancient times and synthesizes a variety of influences into a single whole. This results in a building which is both traditional and modern, national and international .One of Onat's most important legacies to Turkish architecture is his belief in the role played by architects in improving the lives of the people and in their development and education, views which he made known through his works and teaching. When ITU was being established , it was his idea that a Faculty of Architecture should be included, and it was he who was able to infuse a deep-rooted tradition of engineering with the atmosphere of an architectural school within the short space of ten years. He also took an interest in Yildiz Technical School, founded in 1911, and played a part in establishing a Department of Architecture there in 1942. As a teacher he was not a despot but inspired his students; he was modest in character but gave no compromise, he understood the students' potential and guided them towards realising this. Onat was honoured after his death by being given a Special Award for Distinguished Service by TUBITAK
Bibliography: U. Alsac, "Onat, Emin Halid", Eczacibasi Sanat Ansiklopedisi, V.3, p. 1374, Yapi-Endustri Merkezi publ., Istanbul, 1997.
No comments:
Post a Comment