Parametric installation reshapes passenger movement at new Istanbul airport Story by Softroom • Architecture and Design Parametric installation reshapes passenger movement at new Istanbul airport

Parametric installation reshapes passenger movement at new Istanbul airport

Softroom • Architecture and Design as Architects

A flowing, ribbon-like wall has been installed in the new Istanbul Airport that unites a suite of lounges, forming an intuitive route through space that transcends barriers of language and culture. Designed by Softroom for Turkish Airlines, the Flow Wall is over akilometre long, making it one of the longest parametric interior forms in the world. It provides the visual signature that weaves through the six new lounges, creating a series of unified areas that cater for the differing needs of passengers.

 

The wall and the 19,000 sqm of lounges that it knits together are the result of an international competition won by Softroomto create physical spaces thatembody Turkish Airline’s new brand philosophy of ‘flow’ within the airport environment. But beyond symbolic value, the Flow Wall directly forms a seamless passenger journey, by acting as an organising feature through a series of lounges. The wall shifts and changes as it moves through the lounges to accentuate various functions. When it reaches the cinema room, it shrinks down to draw passengers towards the screen, while at the main kitchen area it raises up into a peak to act as a beacon from afar.

 

Placed high-up on the central axis of the building, and resonating with the domed forms of the main roof, the Flow Wallis immediately identifiable from the entrance, highlighting the prime location of the Turkish Airlines’ lounges as a centrepiece of the terminal. The ribbon starts its role as a guide through Turkish Airlines’ premium check-in zone. At the main entrances to the lounges, the iconic Turkish Airlines logo punctuates the installation, which then leads passengers up to a calm refuge at the centre of a busy airport. The wall flows through the reception area and then into the main space, which becomes a hub for access to many different zones. Inspired by Istanbul, this light-filled and uplifting interior space feels more like an open-air courtyard, where passengers feel revived, invigorated and refreshed.

 

Passengers will move effortlessly through zones and the form of the Flow Wallwill relate this experience to the lightness and dynamism of air travel. Contemporary and dynamic, the wall also has a natural quality that has been imbued into the surface of the wall, which provides a warmth and character to the spaces that it encloses. To achieve this, the complex forms were realised in a plywood structure, skinned in strips of bleached oak.The surface is divided by seven flowing lines, representing how Turkish Airlines connect the continents of the world.Light is also used to increase intuitive wayfinding. Flow lines in the wall itself are animated by over five-and-a-half kilometres of programmable LED lightingthat can pulse or glow when needed, and overhead strips of lighting at the lower levels follow the contours of particular routes, reflecting off the highly polished floor.

 

Softroom director Christopher Bagot said: “Turkish Airlines needed us to deliver an iconicdesign for their loungesthat symbolizes their seamless passenger experience and envelops passengers in an atmosphere of Turkish hospitality. The Flow Wall is a groundbreaking project that transcends languages and which shows how creativity and technology can combine to reconsider the ways we delineate interior space and guide passengers through intuitive wayfinding.”

 

The six lounges are made up of two6,000 sqminternational departure lounges (one for business class and one for loyalty programme passengers); a 2,700 sqmExclusive lounge for Turkish Airlines’ most frequent flyers;a lounge for arriving passengers and  two domestic lounges with their own check-in and departure areas that have become a mini terminal in their own right.

 

Continuing their successful partnership with Turkish Airlines, the lounges are operated and catered by Turkish Do&Co. The focus of the main spaces is food and hospitality and there is a choice of over seven different live cooking counters for passengers to select from, including the famed Pide experience. Turkish Airlines and Do&Cofurnished the lounges and invited local designers to create an installation of an Aegean taverna in the main courtyard, accentuating Turkish food heritage, and a tea room and library behind the ribbon, highlighting the local popularity and variety of this drink.

 

Sleeping suites and shower rooms provide much-needed private space, featuring a custom-designed dressing area and desk, as well as a generous bed. With full-height glazing overlooking the apron, hardwood floors and Alcantara wall cladding, these suites are the most luxurious spaces available in any airport for a business class passenger. Other functions, like daybed rest areas, cinema, news room, gaming zone, children’s play area and library occupy spaces off to each side of the central courtyard, architecturally defined by the Flow Wall. Prayer rooms, work pods and lockers are located just by the entrance. In the areas beneath the main lounges, mirrored ceilings are used to create an illusionary effect that replicates the open-air courtyard sensation above.

 

The international Business Lounge is unique as it also contains a museum space, lined with display cases which will house a changing exhibition of contemporary and historic Turkish art and artefacts. The opening display will feature contemporary artworks from partner Istanbul Modern's own collection.

Manufacturing the Flow Wall

Mikodam as Manufacturing and applying the Flow Wall designed by Softroom

IKOOR by Mikodam collaborated with Softroom for Turkish Airlines Lounges in Istanbul Airport. Mikodam manufactured and installed the Flow Wall, which is over a kilometer-long timber structure, making it one of the longest parametric interior forms in the world. The oak wall flows through six lounges, spread to an area of 19 000 square meters, unifying them.

Softroom’s design is consisting of two main areas: International Lounges and Domestic Lounges.

International Lounges hold the Main Lounges and the Exclusive Lounge. Flow Wall acts as an organizing feature throughout the areas shifting and changing according to various functions.

Turkish Airlines Domestic Lounges which has its own drop-off, check-in, security and departures is a mini terminal on its own taking 3200 square meters. There are business class and loyalty programme departure lounges within this part as well.

Mikodam / IKOOR’s signature can also be seen at the L-Counter which is designed by Dinamika. The counter holds business check-in area on one side and frequent flyer on the other; acrylic and lacquer are used for the counter and the brand walls within the design.   

Project Credits
Local Architect
Manufacturing and applying the Flow Wall designed by Softroom
Mechanical Engineer
Lighting Designer
Electrical Engineer
Product Spec Sheet

ElementBrand
Manufacturing and applying the Flow Wall designed by SoftroomMikodam
Product Spec Sheet
Manufacturing and applying the Flow Wall designed by Softroom
by Mikodam
Products Behind Projects
Product Spotlight
News
Midland Metropolitan University Hospital sets new standard for clinical healthcare design
7 Nov 2024 News
Midland Metropolitan University Hospital sets new standard for clinical healthcare design

Architectural studios HKS, Cagni Williams, and Sonnemann Toon have completed the Midland Metropolita... More

EovaStudio uses Baguette Oval glazed terracotta facade from Tempio in sports pavilion renovation
6 Nov 2024 News
EovaStudio uses Baguette Oval glazed terracotta facade from Tempio in sports pavilion renovation

Seville-based architectural firm EovaStudio has renovated and improved a sports pavilion located in... More

25 best architecture firms in South Africa
6 Nov 2024 News
25 best architecture firms in South Africa

Located at the southernmost tip of the African continent, South Africa is home to a varied topograph... More

Porseleinen Hof by Orange Architects connect modern architecture with the city’s industrial past
5 Nov 2024 News
Porseleinen Hof by Orange Architects connect modern architecture with the city’s industrial past

Porseleinen Hof by Orange Architects is an innovative housing development in Delft (NL) that redefin... More

Primary school in Au, Austria by Bernardo Bader Architekten recalls traditional approach to building in wood
5 Nov 2024 News
Primary school in Au, Austria by Bernardo Bader Architekten recalls traditional approach to building in wood

Austrian architectural studio Bernardo Bader Architekten has completed a new primary school in Au, a... More

Key recent projects by Dietrich | Untertrifaller
5 Nov 2024 News
Key recent projects by Dietrich | Untertrifaller

Dietrich | Untertrifaller is an international architecture firm known for its sustainable and contex... More

25 best track light manufacturers
4 Nov 2024 Specification
25 best track light manufacturers

Track lights are versatile lighting systems that offer flexible and focused illumination for various... More

Mixed wood and concrete production hall in Austria nestles neatly in a picturesque village setting
4 Nov 2024 News
Mixed wood and concrete production hall in Austria integrates into its picturesque village setting

DI Simon Moosbrugger Architekt ZT has designed a new production hall facility for Austrian company T... More