GÖRENER HOUSE
Erdek/Balıkesir ︎ 1999 ︎Construction Area: 420 m2 ︎Site: 1.500 m2 ︎Housing ︎ Celalettin Çınar, Ebru Tabak, Nevzat Sayın













A light wooden box that settles against the sloping terrain that extends towards the sea, nestled atop stone walls built to retain the soil, a light wooden box disappears among the olive trees. The exterior and interior surfaces are the same. The north-facing side is completely closed except for two small windows. The one facing south is open...
We are on the island of Kyzkos in antiquity. We see the last point where the Persians came and stopped when they conquered Anatolia. Now, we are on a peninsula connected to the mainland, at a point where we can see two seas at once. All the light of the day passes through the front and inside of the house. The silvery green of the olive trees turns towards the sea, turning the structure into a light box. The sea, the sun, the olive trees, and the box are just one light. The day is ending. First, bright yellow light fills the interior. The olive sea also turns yellow. The void expands. Long shadows, as evening turns into night, shorten and disappear. The most used time of the house is at night.
The space opening onto the terrace extending towards the olive sea welcomes the occupants. The smells of food, music, long conversations, and voices. Everyone is content. The end of the day. Everyone retires to their rooms. The rooms and the terraces extending in front of them open up to the night. The place where the Persians stopped is dark. The wind passes through the olive trees and fills the rooms.