A New Paper Presentation by Res. Asst. Başak Lâle

   Istanbul Gelisim University (IGU), Faculty of Fine Arts (FAF), Interior Architecture Department Research Assistant Başak Lâle presented her paper titled “Past-Present of a Modern Entertainment Concept: Marmara Casino” on May 20, 2023, Ondokuz Mayıs University Faculty of Architecture and Chamber of Architects. realized at the Time Symposium to be held in partnership with Samsun Branch.
 
Research Assistant Başak Lâle presented a paper titled “The Past-Present of a Modern Concept of Entertainment: Marmara Casino” in three stages. In the first stage, one step before the announcement of the Capital, which can be considered the "beginning of modern time" for Ankara, the physical condition and social life of the city were examined. The limited opportunities of the city, the introverted family, and daily life were conveyed to the participants. Then, the social segregation created by being the capital city, the need for housing and socializing spaces, the entertainment venues that were built as a result of this need, and the place of family casinos in these spaces were mentioned. Afterward, the casinos of the province period, including the Marmara Casino, were mentioned between -1923-60 (the Age of Formation), and the casinos were briefly analyzed through advertisement posters and photographs obtained from archive documents. The presentation continued with the contextual and spatial analysis of the entertainment culture exhibited by the Marmara Casino, which constitutes the last part, and the past-present analysis of the space was carried out within this framework. A part of the summary of the paper is as follows:
 
“Marmara Casino has taken on the leading role because it is the first family casino where a modern entertainment concept is exhibited in parallel with the production idea of the Gazi Farm in which it is located, in addition to its architectural features. During the period of its operation, the casino was not only used for entertainment purposes but also assumed the function of a school where local people could experience modern social life in Ankara, which was planned from scratch as a stage for literary events. In the early days of its operation, the casino was a place where people could have fun by the water and listen to Western-style music. Marmara Casino has undergone various changes since the time it was built, in terms of both the entertainment concept it reflects and its architectural features. The transformation process, which started with the exposure of Atatürk Forest Farm in 1950, which can be described as the reflection of the innovative republic idea, in which the casino is located, has continued until today. Examining the change and transformation of both the space and the understanding of entertainment over time is important in terms of examining the teachings of a past, whose foundations date back to the 1920s, about the present. In this sense, the study aimed to examine the Marmara Casino, it's past and present, with the built environment it is in, formally, but also contextually about the casino entertainment concept of the period it belongs to.”