Giulio Mongeri and İzmir: The Architect’s Contributions to the Reconstruction of the City After the 1922 Fire
Abstract
Born in Istanbul in 1873, Giulio Mongeri comes from a Lombardian-origin Italian immigrant family, who integrated into the multicultural sphere of the Ottoman capital. His father was a distinguished physician practicing in Ottoman Empire, while his uncle, Giuseppe Mongeri, resided in Milan and was an acclaimed painter, restorer, and art historian. He also held a professorship at the Brera Royal Academy of Fine Arts, a leading institution for artistic education in Italy. Like his uncle, Giulio Mongeri also pursued his formal education in architecture at the Brera Royal Academy, where he became one of the most promising students of Camillo Boito, an influential figure in the 19th-century Italian architectural theory and restoration practice. Boito’s teachings, particularly his emphasis on historical continuity and stylistic synthesis, left a lasting impression on Mongeri’s early works. Boito’s impact is evident on his early eclectic stylistic choices and architectural style that characterized Mongeri’s formative architectural projects. Upon completing his studies, Mongeri returned to his native city, Istanbul, and began his professional career there. He continued his architectural career in Ottoman Empire and Modern Turkey, producing a significant body of works that span several key stylistic and historical phases. His architectural career may be broadly categorized into three distinct periods. The first is his Italianate period, marked by a strong influence of European—particularly Italian—design principles and aesthetics. This phase includes notable architectures such as the Sant’Antonio Church and its adjacent apartment buildings in Beyoğlu, the Karaköy Palas and Maçka Palas—all of which reflect a sophisticated engagement with European urban architecture of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The second phase corresponds to the First National Architectural Movement, a period during which Mongeri adapted his practice to align with the emerging nationalist and revivalist tendencies in early Republican Turkey. His contributions to this movement include the Şişli Mongeri House, the headquarters of Ziraat Bankası and Türkiye İş Bankası, the General Directorate of Monopolies (Tekel), and the Ankara branch of the Ottoman Bank. These works exemplify an architectural style that sought to synthesize Ottoman-Seljuk motifs with modern construction techniques, responding to the new cultural and political identity being forged in the early Republic. The final phase of Mongeri’s career, extending into the 1930s, reflects a shift toward Modernism, which began to gain prominence during the interwar period. Representative buildings from this later phase include the Güzelbahçe Mongeri House and the Çelik Palas Hotel in Bursa. These structures demonstrate a transition toward functionalist principles and simplified forms, indicating Mongeri’s responsiveness to contemporary international trends while trying to keep local contexts or textures. Entirely, Mongeri’s architectural production between 1900 and 1935 serves not only as a reflection of his personal stylistic evolution but also as a valuable lens through which one can trace the broader architectural transformation of Turkey—from the pluralistic eclecticism of the late Ottoman period to the nation-building aesthetics of the early Republic, and eventually, to the rationalism of Modernist design. Following the conclusion of his architectural practice, Giulio Mongeri moved to Venice in 1941, where he spent the rest of his life there. He passed away in 1951, leaving behind a legacy that continues to inform the study of architectural history in Turkey. Recent scholarly investigations and the subsequent publications have significantly contributed to filling the gaps in the biography of Giulio Mongeri.
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Giulio Mongeri ve İzmir: Mimarın 1922 Yangını Sonrası Kentin Yeniden İmarına Katkıları
Abstract
1873 yılında İstanbul’da dünyaya gelen Giulio Mongeri, mimarlık eğitimini Milano’da bulunan Brera Kraliyet Güzel Sanatlar Akademisi’nde tamamlamıştır. Bu kurumda, dönemin önde gelen mimarlarından ve mimarlık kuramcılarından biri olan Camillo Boito’nun öğrencisi olarak yetişmiş ve onun en parlak öğrencilerinden biri olmuştur. 1896 yılında akademiden birincilikle mezun olan Mongeri’nin mimarlık kariyerinin erken döneminde Boito’nun etkileri açık biçimde gözlemlenebilmektedir. Mongeri’nin mimari faaliyetleri, özellikle 1900-1935 yıllarını kapsayan süreçte şekillenmiş ve bu dönem içerisinde Geç Osmanlı’dan Erken Cumhuriyet’e geçişin yanı sıra Eklektisizm’den (seçmecilik) Birinci Ulusal Mimarlık akımına, oradan da Modern mimarlığa yönelen bir dönüşümün izleri onun yapılarında gözlemlenebilir. Mimarlık kariyerinin ardından 1941 yılında Venedik’e yerleşen Mongeri, 1951 yılında bu kentte vefat etmiştir. Son yıllarda yapılan araştırmalar ve yayımlanan akademik çalışmalar sayesinde, Geç Osmanlı ve Erken Cumhuriyet dönemlerinin etkin mimarlarından biri olan Mongeri’nin biyografisine ilişkin eksik kalan birçok nokta gün yüzüne çıkarılmaktadır. Bu bağlamda, Milano’daki Intesa Sanpaolo arşivinde bulduğumuz bir belge, Mongeri’nin 1922 İzmir yangınının ardından kentin yeniden imarına dâhil olma sürecini ortaya koymaktadır. Bununla birlikte, Mongeri’nin İzmir’de tasarladığı yapılar arasında özellikle 1928 tarihli Osmanlı Bankası İzmir Şubesi binası (günümüzde Garanti BBVA İzmir Kurumsal Şubesi) ile aynı yıl inşa edilen İtalyan Ticaret Bankası (Banca Commerciale Italiana) İzmir Şubesi binası (günümüzde TEB Ege Kurumsal Şube) öne çıkmaktadır. Ayrıca, günümüze ulaşamayan 1931 tarihli Türkiye İş Bankası İzmir Şubesi binası da Mongeri’nin kentteki önemli işlerinden biridir. Bu çalışmada, Türk ve İtalyan arşiv kaynaklarına dayanarak Giulio Mongeri’nin 1922 İzmir yangını sonrasında kentin yeniden imar sürecine yaptığı katkılar ele alınacaktır.
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