November 10, 2024, marked the 86th anniversary of the passing of Türkiye’s beloved Atatürk. Bilkent University commemorated the solemn occasion over the course of two days with several events.
On November 9, the Bilkent Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Murat Cem Orhan and featuring Çağ Erçağ on violoncello, along with the TRT Ankara Radio Polyphonic Choir, conducted by Elnara Kerimova, and soloists Çınar Onur Öner (tenor) and Semih Aşık (baritone), presented a concert in memory of Atatürk. The performance, held at the Bilkent Concert Hall, featured works by
M. Cetiz and G. Puccini. On the morning of Sunday, November 10, members of the Bilkent community gathered at Bilkent’s Atatürk Monument to observe a moment of silence.
A ceremony took place at Mithat Çoruh Auditorium on Monday, November 11. It began with a moment of silence and the national anthem, followed by a mini concert performed by the Bilkent Youth Quartet. Next, students Enda Göl (IE), Elif Lal Karaoğlu (IE), Ece Tabuk (ECON), Defne Uğur (ECON) and Nil Uzel (IAED) presented their HIST200 project, “The Development of Archaeology in Türkiye during Atatürk and the Early Years of the Republic.”
Following this, Asst. Prof. Pınar Sezginalp, Department of Interior Architecture and Environmental Design, gave a presentation titled “A Representation of the Republic: Atatürk’s Presidential Residence.”
During her talk, Dr. Sezginalp focused on the presidential residences of Atatürk and commemorated and revived Atatürk’s legacy on modernization and westernization within the “ideal” spaces. Dr. Sezginalp presented the presidential “residence” of Atatürk as the abstract and concrete pure finalization of this modernistic architectural production of Ankara, which is the representation of the Republic.
