CAPTIVATING -TURKEY- CAPSTONES : TOURISM 2023. {15}

 

Istanbul : Reviving a city's historic architecture just in time for modern Turkey's centennial.

This October, the Turkish Republic will celebrate its 100th anniversary, and to mark the occasion, Istanbul's local government has invested millions in giving historic structures new life.

Among them : Feshane, a factory that has manufactured the iconic Turkish hats and one of Istanbul's first steel buildings, will become one of its largest art centers; west of the old city. 

A comprehensive restoration of the stone-and-brick Mevlanakapi city walls with their 22 towers dating to the fifth century, will transform them into a 4.5-mile [7.2-kilomter] walking path; and the Botter Apartment-

One of Istanbul's earliest Art Nouveau buildings, whose bottom floor was originally a studio for the sultan's private tailor, will be turned into a fashion design center.

There's more. Art museums are planned for the former Yedikule gasworks and the Halic shipyard, one of the world's oldest still in operation.

And most notably, the newly built Istanbul Modern museum, designed by the architect Renzo Piano, will open its doors along the Bosporus in Karakoy, showcasing the works of notable Turkish artists such as Fahrelnissa Zeid and Erol Akyavas. [Nora Walsh].