Tunahan Sahin - Min(e)d Elements #urbanmining

Supervisors: Stefan Breuer and Sebastian

ABSTRACT & KEYWORDS

CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION

1.1 Environmental Crisis

1.2 Impact of the construction industry

1.3 Circular Economy

1.4 The influence of architecture Research Methodology

CHAPTER 2 PRECEDENTS

2.1 Hagia Sophia, Istanbul, Turkey 2.2 Spolia 2.3 WasteBrick by StoneCycling

2.4 Resource Rows, Copenhagen, Denmark

2.5 Upcycle Studios, Copenhagen , Denmark

2.6 Collage House, Navi Mumbai, India

2.7 Baltimore City Deconstruction Project, USA

2.8 Waste House, Brighton University, UK

18 - 25 06 - 09

04 - 05 10 - 17

26 - 33 34 - 35 36 - 37

CHAPTER 3 INFERENCE

3.1 Cognitive Dissonance 3.2 Cognitive Behavioural Therapy 3.3 Aesthetic Economy

3.4 Test Template for Comprehensive Output of Reuse Precedents

CHAPTER 4 REDEFINE

4.1 Shift Our Focus 4.2 Demolish vs Deconstruct 4.3 Harvest by deconstructing 4.4 Loop Pool 4.5 Operational Bodies 4.6 Future Projection CONCLUSION REFERENCES

Literature Review

Architecture can be defined in many ways, and during the design process, different domains can be included according to the themes. Designing a closed fourwalled structure or examining the traditions of a society may also be of interest to architecture. Therefore, no matter how architecture is defined, it is a constant that it is a creative synthesis in which very different data are processed.

As a Civilization, we have strengthened these relations for centuries, enriched this discipline, and developed our civilization and sphere of influence. These data can be collected and processed from many fields, such as culture, nature, economy, psychology, sociology, politics and history.

However, the question we need to answer at the point we have reached today is how successful we are in using and synthesizing this data.

We can give this answer by looking at the current climate crisis. If we compare throughout history, the last few decades have been spent are called the golden age of humanity. A few decades where resources are squandered, our living standards serve our desires, and even the stories we make up are easily replaced.

Unfortunately, nature reminds us that this golden age is coming to an end, during the years we spend without any resources satisfying our society and constantly demanding new ones. Moreover, the worse thing is that this golden age we are talking about ended when many people could not benefit from its opportunities.

Suppose our civilization is genuinely intent on solving the climate crisis. In that case, it must identify its problems correctly and include people who have yet to live through the golden age in their solutions. To write a new story, we must analyse our current problem well and have a holistic perspective.

Many obstacles stand in the way of this comprehensive view and search for solutions. As these seem difficult to overcome, they make our society despair about a realistic solution. However, the mistake we make in general is that we try to deal with the problems collectively while looking for a holistic solution.

Identifying and analysing the problems is the starting point of this work. Instead of solving complex equations, separating them into their elements and examining these elements is the first step for a solution.

Even if the idea of writing a new story that is perfect and covered with rosy dreams attracts everyone, the important thing is that it will only be possible by analysing these elements realistically. If we care about living in an ideal order, instead of believing in fancy new problems, we must face the facts that bother us.

If what we fear is the end of this golden age that has just devoured our nature, created inequality among humans, where we are controlled in droves and just exploited, then the easiest thing to do is to set aside these painful truths and write an unrealistic story that will numb most of the population.

Interestingly, we have done this method many times, and each time we have built some insurmountable new walls with new hopes. Nevertheless, there is no longer a resource in nature to build these walls.

Just as we consume all the natural resources and pile them up in our cities, there is no material left for the walls we will build in our minds. While nasture, which we do not feel sorry for when building our cities, stands in front of us as we call the climate crisis, many problems experienced by society are due to the constant belief in the same lies.

Maybe the architects were only responsible for some of this. However, when we look at the scope and impact of architecture, a system in which these resources are evaluated differently and reused may be related to removing the bricks of the walls we have built in our minds. The new architectural understanding of accepting that we get more than we need from nature and evaluating the existing one cannot be seen as different from these problems that have penetrated the minds of our society. In different definitions of architecture, the most important one is being aware of this responsibility and being the initiator of the solution.

As we harvest, transform, replace, and reuse these resources in our cities, we will increasingly understand the importance and scope of architecture. If architecture is more than a shelter or a definition of space, these products we take from nature and reuse are much more than an object or a building element. Carrying the characteristics of the place it belongs to, witnessing history, the things it symbolizes, architecture and this cyclical system can enable us to come to the light of day and follow these traces.

Keywords

#reuse #loop pool #deconstruction #urban mining #circular economy

#cognitive dissonance #cognitive behavioural therapy #ritual #image

#belief #need #desire #tangible #intangible #virtue signalling

#aesthetic economy #desire #obsolescence #fashion #status #signalling

#conspicuous consumption #exchange value #perception management

#emulation #built-in obsolescence # built-in redundancy

#soft stripping #structural deconstruction #virtual loop pool

#waste management #cradle to cradle #refuse #reduce #recycle

Figure 2:

“It is difficult to speak the truth, for although there is only one truth, it is alive and therefore has a live and changing face.” -

Franz Kafka

Figure 1:

Horizontal Volumes, 1912 Umberto Boccioni

Chapter 1 Overview

Figure 3:

Anthropocentric Healing

How will we be affected by this change in our planet?

What do we need to do to heal in the Anthropocene era?

How can we achieve the result of our architectural efforts?

This section is the part where some information about the main subject is shared. The environmental crisis, the effects of the construction sector in this crisis, the ways and definitions determined as an alternative solution, and the evaluation of the gains of this solution will strengthen the view on the subject and form a basis for criticism.

After questioning the relationship between architectural domains and the responsibilities of architects, the methodology in which the research process is explained, and the general structure of the research will be shared.

The decisions in this section on how the research will proceed also shape the following sections of the article.

CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION

Our civilization has evolved over the centuries, overcoming its physical disadvantage against other creatures and succeeding at the top of the food pyramid. Over time, the daily struggle for survival gave way to different habits and lifestyles.

We learned to cultivate the land and domesticated animals and came to dominate a self-centred system. In one of the most important breaking moments of this story, in the Industrial Revolution, this nature and our society, which we thought we were ruling, began to change at an unprecedented rate in history.

We have come so far without realizing that all the resources we have, all the resources that nature offers us, are misused, and as a matter of fact, nature has warned us. So, what does nature tell us?

1.1 Environmental Crisis

Our habits, production capacity and lifestyles, which have changed with the industrial revolution, have increased the tension we have created with nature. The wars, rivalries and race to destroy nature to reach the raw material resources we need to produce and consume constantly is an unprecedented event, which is why it is one of the milestones in our story.

This approach to nature has continued with the rapid extraction and consumption of hidden resources since the planet’s existence, and it took some time to see the effects. When we look back on the past, we can see that in the 1970s, this balance was disrupted negatively and how insistent we were in preparing our end. Unfortunately, it has only been in the past few decades that the planet’s unavoidable temperature rises, the restriction of access to clean water, and the realization that we need more than one planet earth to meet our current standards.

What is worse is to ignore this problem and make people believe that new technologies such as recycling and green energy are the solution. For example, our oceans are in much greater danger due to postponing the reactions to the use of plastic with the lie of recycling. However, the issue that no one wants to discuss is that a tiny part of plastics is suitable for recycling, and this type of plastic turns into garbage after being recycled only a few times. Another unacceptable situation related to this is that developed countries do not convert these wastes and sell them to poorer countries for money without inspection.

This small example gives information about what other problems related to the environmental crisis have been triggered.

1.2 Impact of the construction industry

In this picture of the environmental crisis before us, the anthropocentric construction sector occupies an important place. Sector behaviour resulting from rapid urbanization is one of the main factors causing and exacerbating the environmental crisis.

While this sector alone is responsible for 37% of global greenhouse gases, it consumes about half of the resources and is responsible for 36% of waste. In addition to the pollution it causes, another issue to be considered is the areas where the resources extracted from nature are transformed and affected.

These resources, which are generally processed as raw from nature, are accumulated in our cities, and these operations are tried to be continued inefficiently. Since this attitude always turns to unprocessed resources, it directly and indirectly affects nature, other living things and society in many ways. Unless this linear cycle is changed, the water and sand crisis show that both industry and nature will not be able to withstand it much.

This relatively inefficient process not only damages the natural environment but also poses a threat to our built environment. This understanding, which constantly grinds virgin material, creates an incredible waste, especially compared to vernacular techniques, and causes social-economic destruction.

Because even though the supply of substances becomes more difficult due to the climate crisis, continuing, in the same way, means stealing from the future and multiplying the problem. It becomes impossible to predict the problems this may cause.

1.3 Circular Economy

The circular economy is an industrial term that refers to the transformation, reuse and recycling of the industrial economy as opposed to the linear system of production, use and destruction process.

In this economy, the profit margin depends on the recovery and reuse of resources as much as possible and the minimization of waste generation.

(BBC/Javier Hirschfeld/Getty Images)

In terms of source selection, instead of using synthetic materials, it is encouraged to choose materials that perform the same function or offer another function that can be recycled simultaneously. This way, besides reducing waste production and facilitating its management, the type of waste can be counted as an added value in biomass.

This can be seen as a complex operation at first glance. However, with our current production capacity and handling capability, this cyclical system may be easier to reorganize than a linear economy. On the other hand, since the materials obtained from resource selection and processing will be natural resources, we also eliminate the stress we create on the environment.

If we take a closer look at the reuse of resources and products, we first have to accept that we humans create this stress on nature with our excellent communication and solidarity skills.

The construction industry provides the fastest and cheapest production of building materials by partnering with people from the other side of the world whom they have never met. This is why even the most minor building material in our construction requires considerable operation, international agreements and trust relations, cooperation skills and a workforce. Undoubtedly, it is necessary to create a vast network and supply chain for this operation.

What makes the circular system much easier is that it starts at local scales and becomes a whole, and unlike the linear system, it is smaller in scale and less dense in terms of planning and operation management.

When we take the steps required for each batch of product to reach the user in the current supply chain, from the supply of nature to the meeting of the user, this network, which includes the human factor at each stage, is enormously unsustainable.

Therefore, if we spend these capabilities and opportunities for more effective access to the resources we have accumulated in our built environment, instead of going to nature every time, our pressure on nature will decrease, and our human power will be transferred to something more useful and valuable.

The profit margin in this economy depends on minimizing waste generation with the possibility of recovering and reusing resources as much as possible.

Figure 4: Urban Mining (Hilda Weges/GETTY IMAGES)

1.4 The influence of architecture

As stated before, the construction industry is one of the main ones responsible for carbon emissions and waste generation; it is also essential to question the existing systems in this field.

One of the integral parts and gears of this process is the architects. Undoubtedly, it would not be right to blame the architects for this painting alone but taking steps to escape this vicious circle has become a responsibility that the architects of our age cannot escape.

In particular, the steps to be taken due to its responsibilities towards nature and society are the most critical force of imposition in changing the construction industry’s attitude and program.

Architects are the most important ones who will design a grand vision of increasing local communication and organizational skills, choosing natural and local materials, designing reusable building elements and reconsidering vernacular structures.

Research Methodology

This research on the recovery and reuse of architectural building elements was completed with weekly online interviews with Stefan Breuer and Sebastian Hicks.

First, to better understand the main theme and draw a roadmap, more quantitative data were examined in the early stages of the research and the general framework of the research was formed.

Current and historical examples were compared with desk research and the examination of many articles on this subject played an important role in determining the scope of the research.

The examples researched and the subjective inferences made were fed by books and visual data on different disciplines seen within the scope of architecture. A template has been prepared that shows the implications of research in fields such as economics, psychology, history and sociology and how it affects architecture. The motivations, forms and effects of reuse in architecture were tried to be systematized with this template.

These stages, in which quantitative data are processed, enriched with qualitative data, and subjective inferences are systematized, provided a lot of information to the point of redefining and personalizing this process, which is the last stage of the research.

As a result of the research and inferences, this process was redefined and contributed to the main research with more comprehensive graphic materials.

Structure

1- Examination of historical examples from the region where we were born regarding material harvesting

2- Questioning the relationship between the conditions of the period and this process

3- Researching more recent examples from different periods and places

4- Questioning the handling of urban mining from a historical perspective

5- Researching the meanings and relationships that the reused material has structural value

6- A comprehensive inference from examples, including sociological and psychological inquiries about material harvesting

7- Defining a new Loop process within the inferences made

8- A projection with the staging of this process and the diagram of the organizations involved

Figure 5: Find the culprit (Image credit: Javier Hirschfeld/ Getty)

PRECEDENTS

Chapter 2 Overview

Examples from different histories and geographies on reuse and acquisition in architecture were examined. It is very critical to examine the effect of the conditions of the period on this choice, to understand how it affects this process, to create a new program and to compare it with current scenarios.

At this stage, it has become one of the essential elements of the research to examine Roman Architecture’s handling of the material and the meanings it attributes, the values symbolized by the architecture in more detail and to make inferences about Hagia Sophia.

With these achievements, shedding light on and making comparisons with current projects and ideas, the final stage of the project was the essential tool used for redescribing the program.

2.1 Hagia Sophia, Istanbul, Turkey

With the Asian continent on one side and Europe on the other, its natural harbour, the Golden Horn, and the Bosphorus, Istanbul is Turkey’s largest city.

This city, which has hosted the rise and fall of many civilizations and empires in the history of the world, has left many stories and structures behind and has become a cultural centre where we can experience them.

However, Hagia Sophia, which has managed to be the most important in every period and continues to be the main focus of discussions, carries the symbols and traces of the power of the leaders and is the unique work among them. Hagia Sophia has different meanings for people. It is a church, a cathedral, a mosque, and a museum.

The first church was built on a pagan temple by the order of Constantine the Great, the first Roman ruler to recognize Christianity as the official religion. No remains from this church, which was burned due to the riots, have survived to the present day. The new building, the second Hagia Sophia, was built on the old church by order of Theodosius the second, but it was destroyed in the Nika revolts in 532, just like the first one. Some remains of this structure can still be seen in the garden of Hagia Sophia today.

A few days after the destruction of the Second Hagia Sophia, on February 23, 532, Emperor Justinian I ordered the construction of the most magnificent building, utterly different from the previous ones, and all the services of the empire were devoted to this structure.

What does a building component do other than its structural function?

Why are these components loaded with meanings?

What other areas might reuse have an impact on?

What was the motivational difference between the reuse of building components between the past and the present?

Could the current examples also symbolize something?

Hagia Sophia, still standing today, was completed by Justinian in 537 Christmas in just five years. This building is the largest religious building ever built. At the opening of Justinian, referring to the Temple of Solomon, “Solomon, I have passed you.” what he said is conveyed.

This building, which has been standing for 15 centuries, is among the masterpieces of art and architecture.

One of the exciting points about the building is that it completed one of the most significant structures in the world in a short period of 5 years, 15 centuries ago.

The church’s construction (14th century) depicted in the codex of the Manasses Chronicle answers how it happened. Instead of producing the columns of this structure from scratch, the empire used the columns brought from the ancient cities in the lands it ruled.

Therefore, columns of different colours and sizes were brought from the Temple of Artemis in Ephesus, the Temple of the Sun (Heliopolis) in Egypt, the Temple of Baalbek in Lebanon and many other temples.

The quarries where the elements used in the building come out or the places where they are transported

1 Thessaly/ Larissa/ Greece - Verde Antico Marbles 2 Port of Demetrias/ Greece 3 Temple of Artemis in Ephesus/ TurkeyVerde Antico Columns 4 Ezine, Canakkale/ TurkeyGranito Violetto Columns 5 Marmara Island/ Turkey - Marmo di ProconnesoWhite Marbles 6 Jabal Abü Dukhän/ Egypt - Red Porphyry 7 Sun Temple of Niuserre (Abu Ghorab)/ Egypt - Columns 8 Baalbek/ Lebanon - Columns

Karystos/ Greece - Green Marble

Necropolis of Hierapolis, Phrygia/ TurkeyRose Marble

Sparta/ Greece - Green Porphyry Marble

Lydia/ Turkey - White-yellowish Marble

Libya - Gold-colored Marble

Vosporos/ Greece - Grey-colored Marble

Pamukkale/ Turkey - Honey-colored Onyx

Rhodes/ Greece - Brick

Figure 6: Miniature 38 from the Constantine Manasses Chronicle, 14th century:

of Hagia Sophia during the reign of emperor Justinian

Figure 7: Hagia Sophia Figure 8: Byzantine empire map (555 AD) and origin of the materials used tothe construct of Hagia Sophia (Author’s Work - Tunahan Sahin)

PRECEDENTS

The building, which survived many earthquakes and witnessed historical wars after its construction, was converted into an Islamic place of worship after the Ottomans took over the city in 1453. The Ottomans added minarets, which are architectural elements that indicate that it was an Islamic place of worship, and made some additions to strengthen the structure.

What should be considered here is that the engineering solutions and aesthetics of Hagia Sophia caused a radical change in the architectural understanding of the Ottomans. The domed mosque typology, which was not seen until that time, is due to the admiration of Sinan, the great architect of the period, for Hagia Sophia. The domed mosque architecture, which is identified with the Ottomans in Anatolia and the Balkans, especially in Istanbul, is described in the sources as an effort to find its elegant form like Hagia Sophia, but free from engineering errors.

Sinan tried to do this in many mosques neighbouring Hagia Sophia in Istanbul until he exceeded the diameter of the dome of Hagia Sophia with the Selimiye Mosque he built in Edirne.

The building, which functioned as a mosque until the establishment of the modern Turkish Republic, became one of the particular sensitivities of the founding president, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, in the first years of the Republic. He decided to transform this building, which has been the subject of many competitions for centuries, into a museum representing peace.

After this date, Hagia Sophia continued to exist as an area where people from all cultures and beliefs could experience and observe Christian and Muslim motifs together.

However, the Imperial Gate has been the subject of an extraordinary legend. This door, used only by the emperor, is a 7-meter-long wooden door and is the enormous door in Hagia Sophia. The most exciting thing about this door, which dates back to the 6th century, is the legend that this door was made with wood taken from Noah’s Ark, according to Byzantine sources.

People still believe in this legend that the news that those who visited Hagia Sophia in April 2022 destroyed a piece of the wooden door to take them with them.

The fact that a door from the 6th century carries this legend to 2022 proves that Hagia Sophia, in particular, carries many stories besides its architectural beauty.

2.2 Spolia

Spolia is the name given to the building materials that are taken from the old building remains and used in the new building.

This practice was mainly preferred by the Romans, where access to resources for building materials would be limited, or shipping costs would be high.

On the other hand, the remains and pieces found in ancient cities were frequently used in large buildings that required much material.

What is interesting here from today’s point of view is that the particular function and aesthetics of the building material are not given much importance, and it is seen only as a tool to meet the need of the new building.

2.3 WasteBrick by StoneCycling

Waste Brick is the name of the building material by which rubble is recycled into brick. There are several stages in the production of Wastebrick, which is an actual example of recycling the waste generated after demolition.

The first is the collection and separation of rubble from the demolition area. After the wastes suitable for recycling are decomposed, they are crushed until they become powder. Afterwards, this powder is mixed with some chemicals, aggregating and shaping in different moulds according to the needs.

After these mixtures of appropriate shape, size and texture are prepared, they are expected to lose their moisture. Products that lose their moisture and dry out are fired in ovens with different characteristics depending on their type and purpose of use. If the selected samples pass the test, they are made ready for distribution.

Wastebrick’s facade cladding and floor coverings are produced according to needs in many forms, such as indoor and outdoor applications.

While explaining its vision, the company sees waste materials as unprocessed resources. They point to one of the most important achievements in urban mining.

2.4 Resource Rows, Copenhagen, Denmark

Resource Rows, a residential project, was designed by Lendager, and many building materials were recovered or reused.

The project is nominated for the Mies Van der Rohe Awards 2022 and features upcycled bricks, waste wood, a reused concrete beam as a bridge, and old windows.

The bricks were obtained by cutting the walls of an old brewery close to the project. A system has been developed and implemented to recover and reuse these bricks, which is the most characteristic feature of the project.

The brick walls of the old brewery were cut into rectangular panels and then fitted into a wooden frame and used for the façade of the new project.

Nine hundred tons of wood, produced as waste during the construction of the Copenhagen metro and thought to be incinerated, was recovered with this project and used as covering on the facade, terraces, balconies and floors. Outdoor woods are burned with an old Japanese technique called Yakisugi, making them resistant to external factors without using chemicals.

Another reclaimed resource is the concrete bridge connecting the roofs. This bridge was again dismantled from a nearby VAX factory and reused in this project.

Rather than recover physical resources, the project also aims to increase the communication of people living here and improve their social lives.

Its roof is arranged as a whole, with greenhouses to grow vegetables and fruits. It also aims to support biodiversity with its courtyard gardens and rainwater beds.

This project, which sensitively uses and even recovers resources to support biodiversity and social life, and brings innovative solutions while doing all these, shows how vital local organizational skills are and proves that unique designs can be made by reusing materials.

PRECEDENTS

2.5 Upcycle Studios, Copenhagen , Denmark

This Lendager-designed project reuses many building materials, such as recycled concrete, repurposed double-glazed windows and waste floorboards.

This project, in which resources are recovered, not only tries to fulfil its responsibilities towards nature but also does not compromise aesthetics. It achieves all these with a relatively small budget.

Located in Copenhagen’s Ørestad district, Upcycle Studios presents a vision for the construction industry to eliminate linearity and move to a circular economy. In this project, which is a local operation, the waste wood sent for incineration has the opportunity to be reused in this project as a result of the cooperation of the Dinesen company and the design team.

Its gains are not limited to structural features but also provide a basis for users to lead a sustainable life with roof gardens and solar panels.

2.6 Collage House, Navi Mumbai, India

Designed by S+PS Architects, the project approaches the idea of reuse and recycling from a broad perspective, from concrete facts to intangible facts such as history and memories.

The façade sets the tone for what is inside, with a “window corner” that reuses old windows and doors from demolished houses in the city.

It is a section where the outputs in the section where many historical and contemporary examples of recycling and reuse are examined in depth and systematized.

Figure 16: Upcycle Studios, Lendager (Image: R. Hjortshoj)

Figure 17:

2.7 Baltimore City Deconstruction Project, USA

Due to the security threat of abandoned buildings in Baltimore, local people want these buildings to be demolished and green areas built.

The decision in this project was to deconstruct these structures instead of demolishing them, and it aimed to recover materials and provide employment. Persons participating in this process are generally selected from disadvantaged groups, trained and recruited for deconstruction.

Local hubs were created to conserve recovered resources, and materials were repaired and maintained there. At this stage, the people who will work were given training and, thanks to this process, many qualified workforces were created.

Local people benefited from this process, revitalising society, nature and the economy.

2.8 Waste House, Brighton University, UK

Designed by Duncan Baker-Brown and made by hundreds of students, this project is the UK’s first permanent building from waste.

Building materials comprise a wide variety of construction industry and household waste, from toothbrushes and old jeans to VHS tapes and bicycle inner tubes.

Located on the Brighton University campus, this building continues to function as a studio for students.

How will we be affected by this change in our planet?

What do we need to do to heal in the Anthropocene era?

How can we achieve the result of our architectural efforts?

Chapter 3 Overview

Seeing the different motivations behind the idea of reuse, which has emerged as a necessity of the environmental crisis today, and separating it into its elements by making a more detailed analysis have been the most critical components in the redefinition process.

Therefore, in this chapter, some psychological inquiries were made, and the relationship between need and pleasure is questioned.

This process was discussed at the concrete and abstract level, and finally, a template was designed in which all these inquiries were tested.

CHAPTER 3 INFERENCE

The climate crisis we are facing and the unstoppable heat increase on our planet are facts that scientific studies have revealed. The balances our civilization was unaware of while reaching its current level require us, the people, to take effective and quick measures today. However, instead of looking for these solutions and taking precautions, there are situations where we cannot go beyond even questioning the accuracy of reality. How can we fail to act on something so obvious and proven?

We must first examine the relationship between knowing and believing to answer this question. Our society develops a belief and behaviour about many different things attached to this issue To perceive the facts based on scientific evidence about climate change. This attitude is quite typical and a sign of what human nature is.

3.1 Cognitive Dissonance

Not being able to find the thought or behaviour that is the obstacle to the solution here pushes people into a dilemma called cognitive dissonance. It makes the solution to the problem more complicated. Our attitude towards every event happening around us may only sometimes coincide with reality, mainly due to the effort to exist and be appreciated in society. All these unresolved dilemmas prevent us from taking practical steps.

While the subject is closed to discussion for people who are not aware of the truth, a destructive contradiction begins for people who know and understand the truth but cannot apply it. The difference between knowing and believing also plays an essential role. Knowing the accuracy of scientific truth is not a sufficient reason for us to act against the climate crisis. Because the reality on this plane is disturbing and demands responsibility. However, on the other side, what is trying to be convinced is the side where we do not have to make sacrifices and where the majority is.

The most important thing in this contradiction is that neither side can be rejected. While the environmental facts are known, it is desired to protect the comfort conditions. This cognitive contradiction paves the way for an atmosphere where no one can speak purely about the truth but is pretended to care. Although we know that plastics cannot be recycled, the dexterity of throwing them in the recycling bin can be an example of this. Unfortunately, this attitude only postpones and complicates the problem.

However, if we want to believe in alternative scenarios rather than reality, we can avoid responsibility by virtue signalling!

In the post-truth era, we live in, shouting populist slogans that the majority would like to hear and continuing to discuss in environments where no solution can be produced will undoubtedly improve neither our society nor our environment.

3.2 Cognitive Behavioural Therapy

Since these cognitive contradictions we experience are complex and excessive, mainly due to the variety of external factors that modern humans are exposed to, separating them into their elements will be the most effective method for detecting and solving all these problems.

First, it is necessary to rationally determine the problem to cope with the environmental crisis and find new solutions. We must find a solution by understanding the reasons that trigger this problem and which ones we can intervene, and we may even have developed a new Greenwashing strategy.

If we refrain from making this rational questioning towards the problem and solution, we cannot go beyond producing a new Greenwashing Strategy.

Let us try to understand how this whole cognitive-behavioural system works through examples.

From the moment we open our eyes to the world, we try to know and understand the world we are foreign. The epigenetic heritage we carry, the family and society we grew up in, and the geography we live in begin to fill the blank notebook in our hands. At first, we try to learn by trying things and often listen to advice from others. Even if we are unaware, it reaches the farthest corners of our minds and shapes our knowledge and worldview.

When we get older and our socialization scale reaches wide circles, we include not only our footer but also their world knowledge in our memory. When we reach a certain age and begin to question, we realize that our minds are filled with many ready-made thoughts and images, like imagining a mad scientist with round glasses, messy hair and a coat. This is an alternate reality we create for ourselves and our brain’s patterns instead of making these long inferences each time. So what exactly does this lead to?

Figure 20:

Wassily Kandinsky, Composition VII, 1913

What if we walked into a room and someone told us there was a venomous snake in the room? Most likely, a picture of a snake pops up in our mind, and because of having this knowledge, we might think it would not make much sense to stay in the room as we think its venom might kill us.

In the background, this possibility changes our body’s physiology. For example, adrenaline may be released to flee or oxytocin to fight. Hormones reveal many emotions, such as stress, fear, excitement, and courage. This trigger and background knowledge about snakes we may never have seen before create a thought. For example, the snake will bite and poison us. Because of all these reactions, we may display an aggressive attitude and try to escape. Everything seems to overlap in this scenario, and it might make sense. So what caused all this?

Due to your pre-existing knowledge of venomous snakes, we have formed an image and belief. Maybe the room was empty. Although this scenario may not seem straightforward and convincing, many scenarios, such as this cycle, happen without us even realizing it. That is why we shy away from public speaking or cannot get rid of addictions, knowing it is harmful. Because to stop these automatically triggered reactions in our brains, we do not question our beliefs or rituals; we focus on our emotions.

When we look at climate change, we find it challenging to make fast, effective and consistent decisions because many of our beliefs and rituals about this problem contradict scientific facts. This state of cognitive dissonance drives us to persuade more popular and well-crafted lies because we are not determined to change our rituals or false beliefs. So, rather than solving the problem, we add new problems to this equation.

3.3 Aesthetic Economy

There is a difference between basic needs that can be satisfied and desires that become more intense as they are met. If this situation is seen as discontent with the social welfare level, it is the questioning of the social codes and economic conditions that cause it.

Unfortunately, these societal conditions take work to change. On the contrary, they are more likely to intensify, so we must be individually prepared to evaluate this situation.

The term aesthetic economy describes a particular stage and mode of capitalist development. Here, we see the transformation of the need-demand balance and the development of a desire-centred product-user relationship. In this relationship, aesthetic aspects of what the commodity is and how it is marketed, advertised and produced become very important.

In the aesthetic economy, most products are no longer produced to meet basic needs but to equip, decorate and improve the conditions of the user. As a result of the evolution and development of capitalism, production has been shaped to obtain better conditions beyond meeting basic and vital needs. Buying and using goods does not mean consuming them, as if they were, meeting our basic needs with today’s production capability and capacity would not be a problem. If we evaluate this situation in terms of the market, after the customer’s demands are met, the market becomes stagnant and economic developments may be interrupted.

However, if the customers think that the products they buy are obsolete, lagging behind the technology, and cannot satisfy their desires, the danger of stagnation becomes insignificant. In short, if the product ceases to be a basic need and consumption item and becomes an aesthetic element that will satisfy our desires. Ongoing fashion trends will occur, and our increasing desires will allow us to constantly buy the same product in different forms.

First, this economic system brings about changes in the definition of the commodity concept. Commodities now exist with the function of creating an atmosphere of life and creating landscapes, and they have an aesthetic value. In this respect, the use value of commodities and their exchange value in the market begin to differ. At this point, if we look at everything as ordinary, what makes the product we buy valuable is our reason and ability to use it. However, we understand things are not so ordinary from their exchange value and symbolic meanings in the market. The effect of exchange value, in other words, its aesthetic value, becomes more important than its use value. These commodities create another atmosphere to satisfy our desires, show our status, and market ourselves. This economic system, which has become an image creation and marketing point while marketing its products, shapes why the product is valuable in some aesthetic perceptions.

Many things, such as our meals, clothes, and furniture in our homes, are not marketed based on the value of using them, however, by considering aesthetic elements such as how they follow technology, how they are perceived in social life, how they are symbolized as part of a lifestyle.

As well as understanding the psychological barriers to our inability to find practical solutions to the environmental crisis, it is crucial to question the conditions that cause it. Otherwise, it is only possible to find a comprehensive and consistent solution by understanding these conditions. Therefore, understanding how economic conditions direct the need-pleasure relationship and how it is represented in different concrete and abstract forms is possible by understanding the functioning of the aesthetic economy.

3.4 Test Template for Comprehensive Output of Reuse Precedents

It is crucial to analyse the solution, provide an environment for inference, and go to the problem’s source and analysis. For this reason, a template was designed to analyse how reuse precedents respond to the elements that create the problem and what relationships they establish.

The planes and concepts in this template have been determined by considering the interactions created by the human-nature relationship.

-The zero point of the diagram represents the beginning and the cause of everything.

-The leaves shaped around them are the essential elements of human behaviour and the stages of problems. It gives some clues about the primary working method for each precedent.

-The circle around it is depicted to show that all these stages trigger each other and become a whole.

-If we look at the big circle, it shows the landscape and culture there. These concepts about how man and nature interact constitute the complete circle.

-This tremendous relationship is handled on different planes. Material-immaterial universe and need-desire are the names of these planes.

-On the left side of these intersections is the natural and built environment in the landscape, while the culture includes beliefs and perceptions.

-Along with the components that make up the human, the shares of the small circle, are also a subset of these concepts and are interrelated.

Figure 21:

Critique of Aesthetic Capitalism by Gernot Böhme

Figure 22:

Test Template and Outputs (Author’s Design - Tunahan Sahin)

INFERENCE

Lissalde,

Spolia Output

In this process, where even the original function is not considered, let alone ascribing meaning to the reused material, the aim is only to close the gaps in the wall. Regardless of whether it is a column capital or a statue, the feature of being a stone, which is a pure material, was considered and applied as such.

For this reason, the test results were focused entirely on the material and need level.

WasteBrick Output

In this application, the recycling of the parts seen as waste has been ensured. Since extra energy is consumed in this process and whether it is efficient or not is open to discussion, it cannot be said that it fully meets the needs of one hundred per cent.

Being in the development stage and constantly expressing the level they want is positioned between need and pleasure at the material level.

Resource Rows Output

Bricks were harvested with a very innovative method. A complex structure has been designed in relation to other sustainability principles.

When we look at the whole design, materials such as wood, brick, and concrete have been reused very well and complete the list of needs.

However, in general, the desire to show that the bricks are harvested while presenting a program tailored to the needs can be seen as an effort to develop a belief in the immaterial scale.

Waste House Output

The fundamental question in the project, in which all kinds of waste are used, is the need for this project. While the solutions developed for protecting the natural environment are solutions to some requirements, transforming it into an exhibition area shows that it creates a perception of reuse.

7045AAD CRITICAL INVESTIGATIONS

Many old doors and windows are used on the front facade of the project, and there are many reused elements, primarily decorative, in the project’s interior. However, the project cannot fully respond to the needs on the structural scale, and architects define the design process as a fantasy.

Therefore, the project is a pleasure-oriented project on the immaterial plane. This is because reused elements want to cause some perception change rather than satisfying the need.

Upcycle Studios Output

The simple design language is the most distinctive feature of this project, in which many different types of elements and materials are reused.

For this reason, Lendager produced the design entirely to meet the needs at the material level. Unlike the Resource Rows project of the same studio, it did not aim to find a cultural element related to it.

Lendager. https://lendager.com/project/upcycle-studios/

Baltimore SunWe are currently unavailable in your region. (n.d.). https://www.tribpub.com/gdpr/baltimoresun.com/

Baltimore City Project Output

This project, which indicates a process other than a specific structure, tries to create the belief that new possibilities are created with the deconstruction technique as its general feature.

It is a project focused on the perception of evaluating the process-built environment that wants to involve the local community.

Hagia Sophia Output

Since it symbolises the emperor’s power, the story that each element reused because of its construction also carries is integrated into this structure.

The emperor’s personal ambition, the pleasure he felt when Solomon passed, and the many legends produced about him make this structure an ample precedent of what reuse can mean.

Figure 23:

Chapter 4 Overview

This part of the essay is where reuse is defined and programmed due to the examples examined and inferences made.

CHAPTER 4 REDEFINE

We are faced with the consequences of the environmental crisis itself and the many problems it causes. Even though many new methods and technologies have been developed to overcome these problems, the fundamental mistake is that they all have the same attitude.

We are obliged to repeat the same mistakes as long as this human-centred life does not give up the idea of using nature only to satisfy our own needs and pleasures.

4.1 Shift Our Focus

The issue we need to develop a different perspective on is access to the resource.

Centuries ago, our ancestors saw nature as a source for making tools or building shelters. He obtained the wood components he needed by going to the forests and cutting down trees and processing nature’s offerings in a way that served him.

This attitude has been like this almost since our civilization existed and has never changed. Although the method of cutting wood from the forest for shelter and processing metal by the factory is different, the primary focus and motivation are the same.

So, what is strange in this case?

We extract raw material from the soil and process it with the technologies of today’s civilization. We then create more complex products and components. This means that this transforming and developing raw material is now transformed into a product with economic value. For example, a mobile phone is now much more valuable than the total value of the metals in it. This shared knowledge and technology is a common achievement of civilization. Strangely, this accumulation and process are only seen as waste when its useful life is over.

We can develop effective methods for the environmental crisis.

Therefore, if we look at the accumulated resources in the cities instead of choosing our harvest areas as nature again with simple mathematics, we can save an incredible amount of time and labour and reduce our stress on nature. We can develop effective methods for the environmental crisis.

In short, the first basic rule is to shift our focus from natural environment to built environment.

4.2 Demolish vs Deconstruct

When we shift our focus to the built environment, we will first question how efficient our current processes are. The things we have to compare here are linear and circular economics.

The process in the linear economy is that the raw resource is used after it is ready for use by going through several processes and then sent to landfills as waste. This means that the natural resource we extract returns to nature as pollution. However, what the circular economy proposes at this point is to put the product, which has completed its useful life, into circulation again without the need for natural resources.

Why should we choose the deconstruction?

Who is involved in the harvesting process?

Where and how will we store the harvested materials?

Despite the linear functioning of the anthropocentric construction sector, research and diagrams help determine the obtained gains in the cyclical system.

A new program was created in line with personal inferences about the methods and teams of deconstruction and the scale.

The first thing we must accept as a fundamental principle is that we will focus on resources, just as our ancestors did. However, the main difference is that today’s civilization has already extracted natural resources, processed them, and turned them into value-added products. Therefore, if we look at the accumulated resources in the cities instead of choosing our harvest areas as nature again with simple mathematics, we can save an incredible amount of time and labour and reduce our stress on nature.

Thinking about future ( Credit: BBC/Getty Images)

When we look at the construction sector, we can compare this relationship by looking at demolition and deconstruction. The difference between deconstruction according to demolition is the recovery of the building components and materials of a defunct structure.

With the recoveries in this process, the components enter the market again, creating added value. The benefits of this process over typical demolition technique are material and component recovery, additional employment and ease of waste management due to less waste generation.

The only thing that can be seen as a minus is that it takes longer because it requires a more comprehensive organization than deconstruction.

4.3 Harvest by deconstructing

We must follow several stages for defunct structures to deconstruct.

The first of these is deconstruction planning. At this stage, architects and contractors analyse the structure and the roadmap of the process according to the characteristics of the structure. Technical analysis and inventory are created regarding the building’s structural systems and interior equipment. The trained team should remove the toxic elements from the deconstruction area.

Deconstruction teams to be included in this process are formed, and information is shared with the team. If a local architect organises where the harvested components will be used, the methods that must be applied while deconstructing can also be included in this stage.

The second stage is where components such as floor covering, door, window, installation and wall coverings, called soft stripping, are harvested. This step can be done by a trained team or the local community by public notice of the owner. Local people may find material that meets their needs here. The fact that it meets this need with the material it harvests instead of a new product from the market makes deconstruction important.

It is possible to use digital services as another type of soft stripping. These products can meet the needy by displaying the products coming out of the building in digital environments. With the increasing technology, 3d scan, telephone applications, and internet sites can be used easily in this process.

After the soft stripping is completed, the next step is deconstructing structurally. At this stage, parts such as supporting wood and steel column-beams, roof structure, roof covering, and wall components are harvested.

If the place where the harvested elements will go is known at this stage, they can be transported directly to the new construction site without going to the loop hub. Coordination of local architects is essential for this method.

Figure 25:

Resource’s Journey ( Credit: Author’s design - Tunahan Sahin)

It is a diagram showing through which stages a natural resource continues its life. In order to pay attention to the dynamic and circular aspects of the process, different scenarios are depicted as Mobius Circles.

There are different stages and decisions in these circles. The front parts of the circle are dark, and the parts behind are depicted as pale versions of these colours.

While the grey colour is the first processing process, the orange line indicates its recovery.

The part related to the scenario in the deconstruction part of the circle is articulated to the main circle.

4.4 Loop Pool

Harvested building components and materials are transported from the field to the hubs, where they will be stored. These hubs can be organized for many operations, such as stock storage, protection, repair, and replacement.

Therefore, beyond a warehouse, it can serve as a centre for processing these materials for their subsequent use or improving their condition with laboratories and workshops.

Another unit that will take place in this centre is the shops to put the products in good condition back into circulation. This can be a physical or virtual store with the possibilities of technology.

4.5 Operational Bodies

Local architectural offices and contractors can cooperate with educational institutions for this deconstruction process, which requires extensive coordination.

The contribution of the necessary training and research to the execution of more efficient operations will increase social and environmental gains.

In addition to these, it also strengthens the communication of city councils to the public and enables them to take social decisions more prudently.

Figure 26:

Deconstruct vs Demolish ( Credit: Author’s design - Tunahan Sahin)

In this diagram, the comparison of two different processes and the stages they consist of are illustrated in detail.

The deconstruction process is a process that creates less waste, improves operability and provides additional employment to local people.

In addition to these, it is a process that will significantly improve the consumption habits of society with an understanding that the effectiveness of educational institutions increases and they have a say.

REDEFINE

4.6 Future Projection

The step that will turn all learned from this process into real gain is planning for the future. Otherwise, overcoming these environmental, social, economic and psychological difficulties will not be possible.

The first of the most critical issues here is to use the harvested elements in a way that can be re-harvested in new projects. Designing to deconstruct is the first requirement to make this process sustainable and efficient.

Another point is that making a new structure from all harvested materials is impossible, so we must provide additional components with vernacular solutions. This means that it is vital to use solutions that will not add extra stress to nature and do not require extra energy to process for a consistent understanding. Starting to build a wall, roofing material with materials such as soil, plants, and straw will also be very beneficial in breaking some moulds.

Figure 27:

Operational Bodies

( Credit: Author’s design - Tunahan Sahin)

Figure 28:

Loop Process on axonometric drawing ( Credit: Author’s design - Tunahan Sahin)

City is portrayed as potential urban mining sites, while units lined up on the street are the local environment. The natural environment is positioned on the other side to remind the balance of our relationship with nature.

1- Urban mining area

2- Cooperation between local architects and contractors and educational institutions

3- Training related to the deconstructed process

4- Trained team to go to the deconstruction area and additional employment opportunities

5- Getting rid of toxic elements

6- Soft Stripping

7- Structural Deconstruction

8- Converting Waste to Wastebrick

9- Repair of harvested elements and experiments

10- The relationship of the local people with the process

11- Virtual Loop Pool

CONCLUSION

The environmental crisis, for which we cannot take any practical steps, is getting worse day by day. Even more than the facts we are aware of is needed to seek sincere and practical solutions. For a solution, the voice of those who want to look for something, unfortunately, is fragile next to popular lies.

Considering the environmental crisis separately from other social problems and trying to solve it will unfortunately not yield any results because environmental problems reflect the disruptions and inequalities in our social life. The situation of the construction industry, which is one of the main elements of this problem, is no different. Moreover, it occupies a great place in the origin of this pollution and social problems.

The understanding that creates injustice and inequality in our social order does not care much about ignoring the responsibilities towards the environment. These problems trigger each other day by day and become more complex by intermingling.

On the other hand, the solution is not hidden in the lies of those who position themselves in the centre and have a loud voice, but in the voice that nature and society try to make us hear from the depths.

Of course, we cannot see architects as the sole cause of this problem. However, they are at the forefront of people who should take responsibility for solving these problems because architecture is much more than building a building. The task of architecture is to be the spokesperson for the inequality in society, the defender of the sensitivity that should be shown to nature, and the creator of the atmosphere necessary for people to live healthily.

Therefore, in the steps that need to be taken with this awareness, they should take responsibility into their own hands and design a fairer, more peaceful and holistic process.

In this Anthropocene age, where humans think they are the strongest and centre of the planet, they should seek a way to heal and create an agenda to improve.

Although some humans think they are strong as a centre and will stay on the top of the pyramid forever, the story will be shorter than it is thought for the human being who cannot make sense of their place in the harmony of nature.

Even worse, unless we focus and seek solutions this way, our social wounds will become too deep to be closed, and our own gains will become a burden. So how can architects solve this?

Architects must be determined and demanding to solve these complex problems and relationships. Designing a program that is sustainable and functional is an element that will speed this up. It can start designing without being part of a linear, unsustainable, global catastrophe order and by demanding what is available to shape its design.

This change of focus, which we mentioned as the basic principle, is the most effective and realistic solution to reduce the current stress on nature. Accepting that nature has given us generously for centuries and focusing on accepting that we must take care of ourselves from now on may seem insignificant. However, it will allow us to make the most effective start. The definition of this shift of focus is also called the circular economy.

The resources we have piled up in our cities are too necessary to ignore and are a potential for our designs. As long as the architect demands this, we can harvest these values without being among the rubble accumulations.

Apart from building materials and design, another process that the architect is responsible for is how this harvesting operation will take place. At this point, the architect’s task is to create the necessary organization for the harvest and to ensure that the newly designed buildings are suitable for harvesting.

This idea of harvesting is a process that will nourish society, nature and architects. Taking the stress on nature and allowing it to breathe will give us a chance. Although the idea of society living based on suitable needs, apart from its lousy consumption habits, by designing the forms with existing ones and opening new employment areas for people who could not have a voice before, it will bypass the most critical threshold and let us meet reality again, even if it does not solve the problems completely.

It will enable us to emerge as human beings again from these rituals we have created for ourselves, in which the truth is not sought, based on perceptions and for which we prepare our end with the delusion that it will never end.

Figure 29: The Street Pavers 1914 Umberto Boccioni

REFERENCES

Bohme, G. (2017). Critique of Aesthetic Capitalism. Mimesis.

Brilliant, R., & Kinney, D. (2016). Reuse Value: Spolia and Appropriation in Art and Architecture from Constantine to Sherrie Levine (1st ed.). Routledge.

Duckworth, C. N., & Wilson, A. (2020). Recycling and Reuse in the Roman Economy. Oxford University Press.

Taranto, M., Barba, L., Blancas, J., Bloise, A., Cappa, M., Chiaravalloti, F., Crisci, G. M., Cura, M., De Angelis, D., De Luca, R., Lezzerini, M., Pecci, A., & Miriello, D. (2019). The bricks of Hagia Sophia (Istanbul, Turkey): a new hypothesis to explain their compositional difference. Journal of Cultural Heritage, 38, 136–146. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.culher.2019.02.009

Plachý, J., Musílek, J., Podolka, L., & Karková, M. (2016). Disorders of the Building and its Remediation - Hagia Sophia, Turkey the Most the Byzantine Building. Procedia Engineering, 161, 2259–2264. https://doi. org/10.1016/j.proeng.2016.08.825

Geissdoerfer, M., Savaget, P., Bocken, N. M., & Hultink, E. J. (2017). The Circular Economy – A new sustainability paradigm? Journal of Cleaner Production, 143, 757–768. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2016.12.048

Arora, M., Raspall, F., Cheah, L., & Silva, A. (2019). Residential building material stocks and component-level circularity: The case of Singapore. Journal of Cleaner Production, 216, 239–248. https://doi.org/10.1016/j. jclepro.2019.01.199

Cooper, D. R., & Gutowski, T. G. (2015). The Environmental Impacts of Reuse: A Review. Journal of Industrial Ecology, 21(1), 38–56. https://doi. org/10.1111/jiec.12388

Hagia Sophia History - the Church of Holy Wisdom - Hagia Sophia History. (n.d.). https://www.pallasweb.com/deesis/hagiasophia.html

How It’s Made - Sustainable Building Materials by. (2022, June 5). StoneCycling. https://www.stonecycling.com/how-its-made/

Deconstruction and Waste Reduction Archives. (n.d.). Delta Institute. https://delta-institute.org/program-area/deconstruction-and-waste-reduction/