Project: Selin Ciftci
Advisor: Felicity Scott
Abstract:
Two major earthquakes that occurred in Turkey on February 6, 2023, left behind a long-lasting devastation with effects that will span years. The impact of the destruction was expanded geographically and magnified in dimension on account of malfunctioning, non-functioning, and broken legal, administrative, and physical mechanisms. Non-functioning mechanisms left people grappling with a collective grief, a situation wherein they couldn’t find time to mourn, and left them marked by a profound sense of helplessness. This research positions the earthquake beyond a simple “natural” disaster ve questions what turns an earthquake into a disaster. While it points to an area far beyond the aesthetic concerns of architecture, it aims to make visible the inherent structure of architecture’s dependence on individuals and decision-makers who hold and wield its power.
While proposing a multidimensional discussion of the earthquake’s severity, this thesis seeks to delve comprehensively into the failures that occurred before, during, and after the earthquake and interrogate a set of underlying claims surrounding those failures. This interrogation is staged around four key points in the earthquake’s timeline: Before the earthquake, the first 24 hours, after the earthquake, and the long-term implications of the earthquake. The thesis traces the failures associated with the earthquake through various discursive, political, economic, legal, and structural claims, like earthquake taxes, construction amnesty, expert warnings, telecommunication, chain of command, etc. at these key moments. The research draws upon mainstream media, social media, interviews, and a visit to the region as research instruments. By curating a series of claims from different sources and perspectives, A Failure Index aims to demonstrate that this earthquake represents not only the collapse of buildings but also a collapse of intertwined political, economic, and media mechanisms.
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