Ali Saim Ülgen: A Dialectical Frame of the Republican Mind

Abstract

Ali Saim Ülgen (1913-1963) was a prominent architect-scholar, educator, author, and bureaucrat in early republican Turkey, yet has remained an unusually under-studied persona in the historiography of Turkish architecture. Resonated with a republican pride of national heritage and aspiration for a nation searching for its cultural roots, Ülgen zealously studied the architectural heritage of the country. His prolific work, from preservation interventions to documentation drawings and publications, exhibits an architectural dialogue to establish a scientific milieu for the artistic creativity of Turks in the modern history. Focusing on Ülgen’s textual materials, this essay addresses the evolving relationship between historic architecture as a form of national identity and an academical subject.