A Century of Craft: Reimagining an Industrial Icon
Founded in 1926 and honored by a visit from Mustafa Kemal Atatürk in 1933, the Sümerbank Keramik Factory stands as a cornerstone of Kütahya’s industrial heritage. A century later, this landmark is being reimagined as a vibrant, "living laboratory" that bridges its historic soul with the future of regenerative urban life. The design strategy embraces the site’s "brown-field" identity, treating the iconic chimney, the historic zigzag kilns (cehennemlik), and the drying galleries not merely as ruins, but as theatrical stages for a museum, craft workshops, and innovation incubators.
By translating the original production line—from the raw clay maturation pools to the firing chambers—into a curated public experience, the project revitalizes the factory as a theatrical destination where memory and production collide. This transformation is rooted in sustainability; the yerleşke is designed to generate positive energy through sun and wind harvest while utilizing regenerative landscaping to heal the earth. Once a hub of Marseille-type tile production, the renewed Sümerbank campus now serves as Kütahya's new cultural anchor, seamlessly connecting the Vefa neighborhood to the city center and fostering a healthy, productive future for the next generation.
