Cultural meanings in the traditional house and the modern apartment flat

Abstract

In Turkiye, a rapid transition from traditional houses to modern apartment flats, during the second half of this century, has resulted in the problem of a lost identity and the alienation of the society from the environment. In this thesis, space organizations of the traditional house and the apartment flats are analyzed, by revealing the cultural meanings of their constituent parts, spaces and elements. The argument analyzes with a detailed investigation of the traditional Anatolian-Turkish house, to derive expressive concepts, and the activity patterns of the pre-industrialized society. Within that context, in comparison to the past, the space utilization of the present apartment flats has been evaluated in terms of the socio-cultural values, norms and habits. Taking this as a starting point, an attempt has been made to sketch a future interior design with an identity of its own or to see if it is possible or not.