Siteler, one of Turkey’s important centers
for furniture design, started to host a
brand-new education model.
Arcora Furniture and Architecture Firm
and Başkent University Department of
Interior Architecture and Environmental
Design have carried out an invaluable project
in the scope of the University-Industry
collaboration.
Setting out with the motto of “Design,
Plan, Produce”, the 3-credit course titled
“The Formation of Interior Space”, the
curriculum of which was set to implement
a participatory and innovative education
model where theoretical and practical information
related to all stages of project
management and furniture manufacturing
will be conveyed through the approach of
“learning on-site and by doing”, which is
a first in Turkey in the frame of Interior
Architecture education, is being held in
custom-designed workshops and studios
in the body of Arcora Garage Academy,
which was inaugurated by Ali Haberal, Rector of Başkent University and
Vehbi Konarılı, Ankara Provincial Director of Ministry of Industry and
Technology.
Aiming to support the knowledge and skills of students with regard to professional
practices, Arcora Garage Academy allows for students receiving
theoretical information and design education at the university to access
theoretical and practical information particulary in industry-sponsored
education milieu in the practical field of wood manufacturing, as well as
to participate in manufacturing processes as observers and practitioners.
Having an important place in interior architecture implementations, wood
manufactures stand for a sustainable building element where one gets to
observe production details, material information and production processes
in the most effective manner. Our education model aims to convey the
information related to wood manufacturing during the implementation
phase in a way that would ensure substantive and permanent learning.
After design, planning and production processes are relayed to students
through theoretical courses, the wood implementation processes are supported
by technical information and implementation experiences to be
conveyed by virtuoso instructors.
In the first course, which is set in this context, students are separated into
4 groups of 5 for their first project assignment, after having examined andlearned fundamental information about wood-based materials. These students
in different groups get to listen and analyze the changes that their
clients are willing to make in the kitchen, bathroom and dressing room,
which are presented to them through a video record, and subsequently
carry out a surveying study in the studios where their projects will be
built. Delivering the preliminary presentations of their projects in the 2nd
course, the students learn about how to calculate their cost analysis accurately
and how to carry out a design in accordance with the budget. In
the 3rd week, the students deliver the presentation of their projects, which
they have revised in line with the criticism that they received. Following
the evaluation of the projects of 4 groups by the instructors, it is then determined
which projects will be put into effect. The students are informed
of how to correctly purchase the materials for their projects, which will be
built by the furniture craftsmen and the students themselves. During the
following 6 weeks, the students find the opportunity to learn about the
specifics of furniture manufacturing from experienced craftsmen of furnitures,
polishing, upholstery and iron works, grounding on the objective of
gaining experience to the fullest in every project by ensuring the use of
different techniques and material use. Subsequent to the 2-week mounting
training, students make another cost analysis in order to see if they can
actually realize their completed projects with the costs that they calculated
in the first place. Ultimately, they get to take the semester’s final course
on entrepreneurship and branding, which we believe are as necessary as
professional information, from interior architects who received critical acclaim
in the sector..
Created with the awareness that aspiring interior architects need to truly
experience how to design spaces and actualize their designs before embarking
on a career, the project’s architect and the owner of Arcore Furniture
Gokhan Uysal evaluated the project.
Uysal said: “We are very excited to be contributing to the first projects of
the interior architects of the future. Each year, we will introduce 80 students
to wood, glue, machinery and all the equipments that the profession
requires, with the help of experienced craftsmen and instructors. These
students will become acquainted with the material and also learn from our
craftsmen and instructors all the specifics of project management. In line
with the objective of developing the project, we are carrying on with our
collaborative studies towards national sources such as The Scientific and
Technological Research Council of Turkey (Tubitak) and The Development
Agency, as well as international sources such as European Union’s Erasmus+
Programme and International Development Agencies.”
