Galataport is a destination project located on a 1.2-kilometer coastline strip between the Istanbul Karaköy ferry terminal and the Mimar Sinan Fine Arts Faculty Fındıklı Campus, which opened in October 2021. The Ara Güler Museum, a part of the Doğuş Group, will be used as a shared space for the Monochrome and Leica brands. The AGLM project, designed by Wangan for the experience and interior architecture, is one of the most significant projects in Galataport, which is planned to become the city’s new cultural and arts center.
Wangan sought to address the challenging design need of a museum, cafe, and camera store working together in a 435-square-meter area. The main design decision in the project was to build the experience narrative around the common points of the brands rather than treating these different functions separately. The central volume, which is covered with a three-dimensional pattern and houses Monochrome’s kitchen area, was designed inspired by the traditional form of diaphragm aperture, a fundamental element of photography and cameras, which is a common point of the three brands. This mass, which features Leica’s display units and exhibition panels for the Ara Güler Museum on its surface, becomes one of the dominant elements of the project by attracting attention from both the interior and the external space through light play created on it.
Although structurally intertwined, the studio wanted to express the difference between the spaces with a bold and contrasting stance. In areas related to the Ara Güler Museum, they used black and white tones with sharp lines using hard materials such as natural stone and metal, while in areas related to Monochrome, they used warm tones with amber warmth and rounded lines with soft materials such as wood.
The Ara Güler Museum Shop, located in Galataport’s Doğuş Square, was awarded the highest level of the “Red Dot: Best of the Best Interior Design” award, which is one of the most prestigious design awards in the world, as part of Wangan Studio’s “Ara Güler Museum Shop + Leica Showroom + Monochrome Brasserie” project. This project became the first interior design project in Turkey to receive this award. You can visit our Museum Shop, part of the AGLM project, which is one of the most significant attractions in Galataport, from Tuesday to Sunday, between 10:00 AM and 7:00 PM.