Ahlat Youth Center, 2017 - Cihan Sevindik | Bitlis, Turkey



Architects: Cihan Sevindik

Client: Bitlis Special Provincial Directorate of Administration

Project team: E. Atalayın, A. Bali, A. İğdeli, C.Asnuk, A. Ekinci, M. Fatih Mutlutürk

Landscape Architects: Barış Ekmekçi, Münire Sagat


Ahlat is dotted by low-rise houses. Locally sourced stone is transformed into a building element in different forms, and a hipped roof formation dominates due to the climatic data. 

The buildings, positioned towards the Van Lake, which is the dominant landscape direction, come together in such a way that they do not interrupt each other's views. 

When the construction culture that moved from Central Asia to Ahlat is examined, it is seen that the tent, which is the building block of nomadic societies, forms the basis of construction. 

The historical buildings in the region were built with inspiration from the tent typology. The proposal developed around the reinterpretation of the tent concept, which is the first word recalled by the action “camp.” 

The design has evolved with the proposal to make a singular tent with different functions under which users gather.