Istanbul / Portrait (Gated Istanbul) – Photographs

Ekkehart Keintzel

As part of its annual A Random City programme, A trans presents two exhibits that spark an intercultural dialogue about visions of urban and landscape space. Taking traditional residential modes and lifestyles in the metropolis of Istanbul as his example, German-Austrian architect Ekkehart Keintzel’s Istanbul/Portrait photographs depict a transformation of identities. During the 1930s, a new cityscape in the International Style emerged on the Bosporus, one that symbolised the modern Turkish republic between Orient and Occident. All around the old city centre, a large number of immigrants erected large-scale settlements (Gecekondu) without the benefit of planning processes or permits – it was their very own self-service city. Urbanisation took place here informally and on the basis of an individual and collective initiative. Today, gated communities are gradually appropriating these attractive residential areas. The newly established middle class and elite prefer to live in artificial thematic landscapes with lakes, such as the New Bosporus – facilities that represent an idealised image of interchangeable international megacities.