BARN Arch’s design approach, which positions it as a space for expression and action, takes architecture beyond conventional boundaries. Collaborations with artists sometimes become the fundamental narrative of projects, resulting in unexpectedly layered works. Structural elements are not only functional but also become powerful storytellers through the relationship they establish with the user. Materials are continually rediscovered in terms of form, texture, and context, expanding the vocabulary of design. You can find clues to this unique and critical approach in our interview with Ağacan Bahadır and Tümer Keser.
Redbull Music Academy Stage, Istanbul, 2016
Can you broadly summarize your design approach?
We see design as a form of speech and action; our understanding or approach is shaped by the words we produce. These words generally blur existing boundaries, enabling us to produce work that leaps across the line and attempts to exist outside conventional architectural practice. Considering our work to date, which has mostly focused on spatial approaches, material usage, scales, and concepts of transience and permanence, we can describe this understanding as proactive, productive, and critical.
Futurave Night, Istanbul, 2019
How do you manage to incorporate art and artistic production into your projects? Could you evaluate this in the context of your design characteristics?
We strive to closely monitor and share developments outside our organization with all our stakeholders in the office to the greatest extent possible. This allows us to benefit not only from our in-house productions but also from collaborations with other artists during the design process. In fact, we sometimes find it right to base the narrative of the project’s main text on the collaboration and the artist’s work rather than on architectural discourse. This can lead to the resulting work having a narrative that goes beyond expectations.
Ayı Pub, Istanbul, 2022
When does a structural element transcend its function and become a narrative device? What do you think determines this threshold?
We can say that all structural elements have a narrative, but the power or threshold of this narrative is variable. Structural elements can form a whole on their own depending on the context of the project, or they can represent something by establishing a fundamentally successful harmony with multiple elements. For us, the limits of the representation’s threshold are directly related to the impact we plan to leave on the user. However, we believe that the detailed solutions resulting from the relationships between structural elements play a significant role in enriching the narrative and reveal the potential of the materials used.
1. Bomontiada, Istanbul, 2022 2. Futurave Night, Volkswagen Arena, 2019
Is the characteristics of the material shaped more by its form, texture, or context? How did you prioritize these three aspects in the design process of your projects?
These three criteria constantly play a role in our project production processes, shifting in priority and order. The most important one is simply composing the sentence we want to create with the right words. To do this, it is crucial to diversify our material research and maintain a broad vocabulary. Our material research continues independently of the project processes. The different forms and textures we encounter and discover open the way for us to establish a healthy relationship with our context, avoiding repetition.
Interview: Deniz Alkanlar