Carvings and Aggregates: New Prototypes for Cappadocia’s Rock Architecture II

This is the second studio in the Cappadocia trilogy co-sponsored by GAD Foundation in Istanbul, Turkey. The studio will examine new techniques of carving and aggregation toward a contemporary architecture that deals with rock habitation. Rock architecture has a long tradition in the Cappadocia region of Turkey reaching back millennia. Since ancient times, peoples of Hittite, Persian, Greek, and Turkish origins have settled in the Anatolian plateau and appropriated the soft volcanic tuff for architectural purposes. Today, the region is renowned for its unique rock dwellings, which encompass a 4000-year history of human and nonhuman habitation ranging from houses and churches to animal shelters and dovecotes. Declared a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1985, parts of Cappadocia have been transformed into a large open-air museum, while other areas are being used for everyday programs like hotels, restaurants, and shops.