Existing green spaces in Istanbul are few and far between. When considering the approach for a park located six miles north of the city center, we asked ourselves: how do we draw strangers-to-nature to this destination?
![Parkorman](https://aasarchitecture.com/wp-content/uploads/Parkorman-by-Dror-02-876x493.jpg)
We set out to create a park that dissolves the anxiety and fear that often accompanies an unfamiliar environment through a network of conditions that fosters unconditional love.
![Parkorman](https://aasarchitecture.com/wp-content/uploads/Parkorman-by-Dror-03-876x493.jpg)
We imagined the most profound experience delivered through the lightest touch; an effort that preserves the lush forest and leaves every tree in place, as mandated by the city.
![Parkorman](https://aasarchitecture.com/wp-content/uploads/Parkorman-by-Dror-04-876x493.jpg)
Our masterplan for Parkorman is a web of possibilities; a living system of places for visitors to explore. Instead of dictating one’s path through the park, visitors write their own experience. Numerous non-linear pathways, like calligraphy, weave through the existing woodland, surprising people with unexpected discoveries along their journey.
![Parkorman](https://aasarchitecture.com/wp-content/uploads/Parkorman-by-Dror-05-876x493.jpg)
Five main zones, each with their own distinct qualities, are designed to provoke emotion. The Plaza, at the entrance of the park, presents nature as a place for collective experience and gathering.
![Parkorman](https://aasarchitecture.com/wp-content/uploads/Parkorman-by-Dror-06-876x493.jpg)
Interaction and play are encouraged through a series of interventions spread throughout: swings and hammocks sway above the bed of the forest (The Loop); giant ball pits, inspired by Turkish spice markets, invite people to dive in (The Pool); a footpath floats above the ground and twists around tree trunks into giant loops with trampolines at the center (The Chords).
![Parkorman](https://aasarchitecture.com/wp-content/uploads/Parkorman-by-Dror-07-876x493.jpg)
The Grove, a maze-like trail pollinated with sculptures that relate to the landscape, spurs exploration, while The Fountain of Clarity, a cube-shaped frame that sends water down all four sides and opens via hydraulic piston to envelop oncomers, prompts reflection.
![Parkorman](https://aasarchitecture.com/wp-content/uploads/Parkorman-by-Dror-08-876x493.jpg)
Through the sum of these experiences, a more intimate relationship between landscape and being is forged, and nature is reintegrated into the city’s harsh urban lifestyle. Source by dror.
![Parkorman](https://aasarchitecture.com/wp-content/uploads/Parkorman-by-Dror-09-876x493.jpg)
- Location: Istanbul, Turkey
- Architect: Dror
- Client: Bilgili Holding
- Status: on-going
- Images: Courtesy of Dror
![Parkorman](https://aasarchitecture.com/wp-content/uploads/Parkorman-by-Dror-11-1-876x493.jpg)