Sıhhiye – A Place of Gratitude and Remembrance for Healthcare Workers

Memorial spaces, by the nature of their purpose, remind us of the past. But is remembering enough? The act of remembrance is a whole that involves experience. To truly remember an event, one must recall all its layers, feel it, and understand it. The aim of this project is to keep the act of remembrance alive through experience. This experience is not found in a monumental structure located at a single point of the project site, but rather is spread throughout the entire area, maintaining continuity. Moreover, experiencing a space requires more than simply being there—it calls for engaging multiple senses with that place. Interactive zones of engagement are the most critical part of the experience. The experience begins in Enki, the space of hope. As an interactive experience area, “hope” makes one feel that hope exists if we stand together. “Discovery” is the striking point that leads to different feelings of the memorial space, to different directions. It is the area that catches the user’s attention and sustains the experience. “The Blurring of Time” keeps the past alive today. It is the area where one feels the weight carried by healthcare workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. “Drawing In” is the section within the continuity of the memorial space that invites the user to experience it, calling them to the other areas of remembrance.

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND

Ankara, which was a small town in the early 1920s, underwent intense construction activity after being declared the capital. The new government saw the shaping of Ankara as the first step in embodying the idea of the Republic.

Situated between the old and the new settlement, Sıhhiye appears as a point of connection, symbolizing the metaphor of health. In this context, Sıhhiye, where important health institutions were placed in a planned manner, played a crucial role in symbolizing the modern administration’s desire to create healthy individuals, a healthy society, and a healthy city (Kılınç, 2002).

The old Ministry of Health building in Sıhhiye is the first example of a modern building in Turkey and served as a ministry building for a long time, securing a place in collective memory.

Discovery
This is the point that invites the user into the continuity of remembrance within the project area, where the user begins to explore the site. It is the space that continues with feelings.

The Blurring of Time
To remember, one must experience. To keep the past alive today and to remember, one must live that feeling. In the section called “The Blurring of Time,” it is aimed to make people experience the feelings healthcare workers had during the COVID-19 pandemic. This includes moments when they felt all the burden on their shoulders, moments of helplessness, and times when they wanted to go back to their families but couldn’t. In this area, massive structures surpassing the human scale and narrowing at certain points along the axis are intended to evoke a sense of helplessness. The holes created in the structure connect with the outside. They offer glimpses of the places one wishes to go, which can only be reached upon completing the axis.

Drawing In
This area is a point that draws the user from Abdi İpekçi Park into the memorial space. On one side, enormous structures exceeding human scale have been created to spark curiosity. There are bridges that connect to the recreational area and highlight the characteristic feature of the site. By creating a sense of transition, they guide the user into the memorial space.

Hope
When you turn a corner, you find hope again…
The more we stand together, the more evident hope becomes!

Hope is the feeling everyone seeks in the toughest times. Even in the worst circumstances, it’s an expectation that can be felt from somewhere. “Hope” in Enki is the focal point of the memorial experience. It is positioned at the most accessible location of the project site and can be viewed from various angles. During the COVID-19 pandemic, it was experienced that only collective effort and self-sacrifice were meaningful. Hope emerges only when we strive together. In “Hope,” the focal point of the memorial space, an interactive remembrance experience is provided. In front of the Hope unit, there are small structures inscribed with the names of healthcare workers who lost their lives during the COVID-19 pandemic. These structures are touch-sensitive; when the user touches the sensitive area at the top of the structure, it triggers movement in the monumental structure. The more of these small structures are touched, the lower the monumental structure descends. As the field of view expands, the Ginkgo tree located between the monumental structure becomes more pronounced. Ginkgo represents hope: the more people come together, the more hope appears…

State of the Power of Unity
To fully embrace the act of remembrance with all our senses, we must be in direct interaction with the memorial space. Small touch-sensitive structures were designed with the names of healthcare workers who lost their lives during the COVID-19 pandemic.
When the user touches these small structures, the monumental structure descends, and the symbol of hope, the Ginkgo tree, becomes more visible. The more people there are, the more evident hope becomes, just as it was crucial to strive together during the COVID-19 pandemic.

As a result of our consumption of nature, the COVID-19 pandemic prompts us to question the importance and value we place on nature. In the project area situated along the stream axis, the use of light structures aimed to minimize construction and also support air circulation.
Rainwater reuse was facilitated and highlighted by height arrangements in the area, directing rainwater to the space of hope. When sufficient rainfall is reached, the pool in the “Space of Hope” will fill with water. In the opposite case, if there is insufficient rain, the pool remains empty, emphasizing that we receive in return only what we give to nature, and we must act respectfully. Nature is a healer; water here represents healing, and doctors also provide healing.

In line with the theme of efficiently using what nature offers us, solar lighting is used on the ground to make maximum use of sunlight. An ecological corridor has been formed through green space arrangements in the project area located between Abdi İpekçi Park and Kurtuluş Park, two important green spaces in the region. Local materials such as andesite have been chosen, and gaps have been created in the hard surfaces to allow the flow of water.

By collecting rainwater, it is ensured that rainwater gathers in the space of hope through grading and drainage within the area. Whenever it rains, the water in the area will accumulate here. What if there is little or no rain? Ginkgo leaves, the main symbol of the space of hope, are depicted on the pool floor. Even in the worst of times, there is hope. By being aware and respectful to nature, our primary source of healing…