All posts by Aras Burak


Sancaklar Mosque

An architect friend of mine was visiting Istanbul last month and asked me if it is easy to get a taxi from Taksim to Sancaklar Mosque. It takes about 100km to reach Sancaklar Mosque from Taksim – meaning it would cost a fortune for my friend to go there on his own. Since I was also curious to see the building, we have organized a minibus tour to the Sancaklar Mosque in the weekend. 
Most of the trip towards the eastern end of Istanbul takes place on a highway. When you have Italians with you, it is quite embarrassing to..

Louvre Abu Dhabi

As I approach Louvre Abu Dhabi by foot, I see three guys on a boat, right next to the bright white gallery box below the ground level, wiping the marks left by the sea where the gallery meets the sea. It takes energy and love to live with great architecture. You can not leave a piece of lemon on a beautiful kitchen counter built by natural stone. I believe living with great materials; great buildings require love and care, just like how beautiful clothes can not simply be thrown to the washing machine. Louvre is the most beautiful building in..

Broad Museum

The Broad Museum opened a month ago in downtown Los Angeles right next to Gehry’s Walt Disney Concert Hall. Architects of the Boston Institute of Contemporary Art and Highline of New York, Diller Scofidio + Renfro designed and completed their third landmark building in the United States. Broad Museum is probably the second most impressive building I have ever seen in Los Angeles after my first visit to Bonaventura Hotel. Los Angeles is, in general, not the best city for a certain kind of architecture. The skin of the building is rigid, wrapping sides, even internal ceilings. The ground level of the building is reserved..