[EN]
In the urban scene there is a frequent provision of public land in political ways and it is said that efforts devoted to the globalization of Istanbul have gone far beyond the consumption of Coca-Cola and McDonaldization (Erkip, 2000). Today; in the slippery context, where left seems right and right seems left, something seems the other and mimics completely something else; in-betweenness is understood as a political stance. This very postmodern condition of living is reflected to urban housing through orientation of media as fake and populist images. In this context, planning housing in a fragmented metropolis cannot only be taken through economic linguistics, but also through fragmentation within different expectations and life-styles and the hybrid culture of Istanbul. Between privatization and commodification of land where is the house and Istanbul urbanite placed? Okkito Corporation is therefore a question of articulation of the urbanite through his/her house to the city.
Okkito; deriving from inner urban dynamics and intersection, puts forward social and political stances which affects and shape the web of contemporary house. It emerges as a performance experimented between housing and perceivers. It is an attempt to address articulation of housing perceiver to the urban in a mass housing context. It refers to an imageless way of thinking vis-à-vis a changeability of the factors related to articulation problematic. In this context, Okkito researches new approaches to housing through different metaphors, with the idea based on differentiation and variation which negotiates fragmented urban life.
In late 1980’s and 1990’s, with globalization, physical transformations emerged new consumption and metropolitan living styles. In the urban scene, the physical and transformation of housing and settlement areas revived imagification process. In this context, housing in Istanbul and globalization effects have become an important indicator of social aspects in urban transformation and land revision plans which are changed politically frequently projects social aspects due to rising population. With the effects of media, housing has become to represent a simulacrum where different identities, new living styles and ideals are grounded do than the past.
As being a parody in housing production, Okkito interrogates influences on land speculation and relationship between housing- corporation and individual, where urbanites are regarded as users. Okkito, criticizes corporation’s not having a social or a grounded philosophy of housing policy, and additionally their approach to the liberal network of estate, competing with private and foreign companies for land; their in-between position through reflections in the urban fabric. In the postmodern and slippery context of today, in betweenness is deciphered through reflections of political decisions on urban space and housing policies.
Okkito aims to explore and negotiate the potential of an imageless and unmediated form of housing. It brings into open multiple meanings of dwelling as a humanistic need and a self-organizing system. Between privatization and commodification of land, it questions the condition of contemporary house and urbanite and effects of dependability and credibility of media. Okkito is a question of articulation of the urbanite through his/her house to the city. In-betweenness is approached as critics of housing production with respect to reflections on urban fabric.
Okkito puts forward the creative perceiver, or the dweller or instead of the former user. Okkito departs from the view that Istanbul urbanite knows how to live and construct his/her environment. In this context, Okkito tries to increase public awareness of living in the city and signs corporation-housing-individual relations. Today, where there are meaning shifts and besides articulation, Okkito is an experimental and an experiential installation on contemporary housing.
Okkito is founded on Internet; and also advertised within posters to be hang through several places, kiosks, telephone poles in the city. After the attendance of the audience by contacting the perceivers up to 2 people or family are chosen with a drawing. Perceivers are given a housing kit in real dimensions. Each housing kit is a 3,5x 2x 2,3 m (h) house and 50x50 cm additional patches. Site is in a 150m2 district in Sefakoy; one of the focus areas of urban transformation plans. Houses are a 7m2 base with a 25m2 land surrounding them consisting of 55m2 membrane facades.
Houses are produced in a membrane factory and installed on site with Okkito assistants. Additional patches, as in many parts of the houses given to the perceiver are surrounded by fastened bands. Patches sign to land speculation and differentiation between private and urban. With additional parts, the dweller can extend or shrink his/her land and the house within defined limits. Perceiver can also express literally on the walls of the houses he cannot change physically related to housing image. House finds its meaning as an interior-volume-surface. The patchwork signs land speculation and the private/public space of the house and the fabric material is referring to the “smooth space” definition of Brian Massumi, epitomizing an open system. Borders between house and urban space create transitivity within fabric. The land is meant to be the public space of the dweller and it is up to him/her to define the level of his confrontation to his city. Interviews with perceivers, the condition of the houses, are recorded and at the end of the work, a video shooting is installed in a gallery.
About Art Project
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