84 years in urban memory: The relationship of Izmir Atatürk High School-Kültürpark

Abstract

The 1922 Great Izmir Fire points to an important historical rupture in urban memory of Izmir by erasing the past and transforming the urban space. After this demolition, Kültürpark was constructed on the fire debris and accepted as the construction of modern Izmir of newly established Turkish Republic. This change has created new spatial relationships and experiences. One of them is Izmir Atatürk High School-Kültürpark relationship which was constantly produced with the help of user practices, created a collective memory about Kültürpark. The physical neighborhood of the park and high school in the city has created a compulsory interaction between high school students and Kültürpark. Daily life in the park was more easily experienced by students than random teenages. Thus, this defined user group has created their own memory of Kültürpark over the years. In the study, “What is the memory of Kültürpark in Izmir Atatürk High School students?" is considered as the main problem. It is aimed to explore different historical, social, and spatial layers of Kültürpark. Reminding the importance of the park once again is the other objective of the study. A survey was conducted among 302 graduates between 1951 and 2020 to determine the "different Kültürparks" in the memories of Izmir Atatürk High School students. A mixed set of questions was prepared, and a qualitative analysis was carried out. As a result, the various Kültürpark experiences were determined by the help of these dynamic user profiles. Spatial and social changes in both city and country have been discussed in the context of collective memory.