Thierry Dreyfus lights up Istanbul's 'fairy-haunted' Perili Köşk mansion

A view looking up from the street to the undersides of balconies where screens have been installed — Lighting designer Thierry Dreyfus has given Istanbul's historical Perili Köşk building a digital reawakening

(Image credit: TBC)

As the economic behemoth that is Turkey sprints into the future (see W* 176 celebrating the CIVETS countries), reminders of the past remain few and far between. Perili Köşk – otherwise known as the fairy-haunted mansion – is a spectacular exception, teetering on the western bank of the Bosphorus in the heart of Istanbul.

The century-old manor, home to the Borusan Contemporary Art Museum, remained unfinished for decades, until a recent renovation brought it back into the cultural sphere. A new installation by lighting designer Thierry Dreyfus does even better, setting it alight at night and, as the artist says, 'brings the fairies back into view'.

Dreyfus takes the building's most distinctive features - the cantilevered balconies that hug the corners and curve around the nine-storey spire - and illuminates them from below with cosmic video screens embedded in the undersides. As dusk falls and the muezzins begin the evening call to prayer, the screens come alive with recordings of passing clouds, currents of water, or rays of sun peeking through the trees. It's as if the building were broadcasting scenes from its own memory.

The Borusan originally commissioned the installation as part of the 13th Istanbul Biennial. After lighting up briefly in September, it came to life again this week in honour of the 70th anniversary of the Borusan Foundation, rescuer of the building.

As for the best view? Dreyfus says it's from the Bosphorus – from the hundreds of boats that float past each evening. 'When the sun sets, when the images of the films are melting into the sky,' he muses. Passers-by, however, will also get an eyeful for some time to come, as the installation is set to light up the historical building for the next three years.

The screens displaying footage of going through a tunnel — Perili Köşk, otherwise known as the fairy-haunted mansion, teeters on the western bank of the Bosphorus in the heart of Istanbul and is home to the Borusan Contemporary Art Museum

The screens displaying motions of running water — Dreyfus has taken the building's most distinctive features – the cantilevered balconies that curve around the nine-storey spire – and illuminated them from below with cosmic video screens embedded in the undersides

The screens displaying sunlight shining through clouds — At dusk the screens come alive with recordings of passing clouds, currents of water, or rays of sun peeking through the trees

INFORMATION

Borusan Contemporary Art Museum
Baltalimanı Hisar Street
Perili Köşk No:5
34470 Sariyer
Istanbul

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Based in London, Ellen Himelfarb travels widely for her reports on architecture and design. Her words appear in The Times, The Telegraph, The World of Interiors, and The Globe and Mail in her native Canada. She has worked with Wallpaper* since 2006.