Mosque & Youth Center Complex

The project site in Fevzi Çakmak, Esenler, Istanbul, was previously a parking lot. To create a more valuable public space, the project was developed together with the neighboring park, integrating the youth center with green space and enhancing the sense of community provided by the mosque with the square and pedestrian paths.

The mosque and youth center complement each other both functionally and structurally. The square, lowered half a floor, serves as an extension of the prayer hall and a gathering point for events. The mosque’s arched inner facade continues in the youth center, with its roof completed by vaults.

The second facade, acting as a sunshade, provides light and climate control while ensuring privacy for the prayer space. The pressed brick facade creates a continuous, tonal expression on the exterior. The mihrab wall, detached from the main mass, creates changing light and shadow compositions, enhancing the transcendent atmosphere and abstract exterior of the building.

Though free of excess, the interior preserves traditional mosque decoration. Kufic inscriptions, in harmony with the architecture, are used on the mihrab, pendentives, and visible elements without excess.