‘istanbul disaster prevention + education center’ by superunion architects, istanbul, turkey  all images courtesy of superunion architect

norwegian practice superunion architects have created an entry for the istanbul disaster prevention and education center competition.
located in a void between the city and airport, the site has no historical or contemporary significance.
the flat surface seemed to be lacking community and definition which is why the architecture firm decided to create
a building that bordered on art. 

superunion architects: istanbul disaster prevention + education centre elevated off the ground by columns, steps, and a statue which appears to be lifting the front end of the structure 

loosely based on the ‘atlas’ statue by lee lawrie, the dark horizontal form is elevated on individual elements,
one of which is a gold statue of a male figure. this represents mankind and the importance of supporting the collective science.
the floating monolith is sealing and protecting the knowledge and learning needed for preventing future disasters. 
 
underneath, a public park creates a community space. the garden has greenery and fountains to bring a natural element
to the surrounding area while the shade from the structure above provides cooling and shelter. 

superunion architects: istanbul disaster prevention + education centre view of building from ground level 

superunion architects: istanbul disaster prevention + education centre fountain shooting water into a mezzanine

superunion architects: istanbul disaster prevention + education centreinterior perspective 

superunion architects: istanbul disaster prevention + education centremodel of building 

superunion architects: istanbul disaster prevention + education centresite plan

superunion architects: istanbul disaster prevention + education centre floor plan / level 0 

superunion architects: istanbul disaster prevention + education centrefloor plan / level 1 and level 2

superunion architects: istanbul disaster prevention + education centresection 

superunion architects: istanbul disaster prevention + education centre space planning diagram 

superunion architects: istanbul disaster prevention + education centreaerial view of model 

project info:
 
 
status: international competition 
program: disaster prevention and education center
program size: 5 000m2
site: 27 000m2
location: istanbul, turkey
client: istanbul metropolitan municipality
team: johanne borthne, vilhelm christensen, pål arnulf trodahl, bjørn andreassen
year: 2011