Mehmet Vedat Tek (1873–1942) was a Turkish

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

who was one of the leading figures of the First Turkish National Architectural Movement.

Early life and education

Cretan Muslim The Cretan Muslims ( el, Τουρκοκρητικοί or , or ; tr, Giritli, , or ; ar, أتراك كريت) or Cretan Turks were the Muslim inhabitants of the island of Crete. Their descendants settled principally in Turkey, the Dodecane ...

origin, Vedat Tek was born in

Istanbul ) , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = 34000 to 34990 , area_code = +90 212 (European side) +90 216 (Asian side) , registration_plate = 34 , blank_name_sec2 = GeoTLD , blank_i ...

to the

governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

of Baghdad Province Giritli Sırrı Pasha and composer Leyla Saz as their second son. His older brother was Yusuf Razi Bel (1870–1947), who later became an engineer. After finishing

Galatasaray High School Galatasaray High School ( tr, Galatasaray Lisesi, french: Lycée de Galatasaray), established in what was then Constantinople and is now Istanbul, in 1481, is the oldest high school in Turkey. It is also the second-oldest Turkish educational in ...

in Istanbul, he was sent to

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

for higher education. He attended

Académie Julian The Académie Julian () was a private art school for painting and sculpture founded in Paris, France, in 1867 by French painter and teacher Rodolphe Julian (1839–1907) that was active from 1868 through 1968. It remained famous for the number ...

for studies in painting and then studied at the

École Centrale Paris École Centrale Paris (ECP; also known as École Centrale or Centrale) was a French grande école in engineering and science. It was also known by its official name ''École Centrale des Arts et Manufactures''. In 2015, École Centrale Paris mer ...

, graduating with a degree in civil engineering before he got his further education in architecture at the

École des Beaux Arts École may refer to: * an elementary school in the French educational stages normally followed by secondary education establishments (collège and lycée) * École (river), a tributary of the Seine flowing in région Île-de-France * École, Savoi ...

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...

. He thus became the first formally educated Turkish architect.

Career

Early work

After returning home in 1897, Vedat Tek contributed with his projects to the forming of the first Turkish national architecture movement ( tr, Birinci Ulusal Mimarlık) along with

Mimar Kemaleddin Bey Ahmet Kemalettin or Kemaleddin (1870-13 July 1927), widely known as Mimar Kemalettin (Kemalettin the Architect) and Kemalettin Bey, was a renowned Turkish architect the during the late Ottoman Empire and the early years of the newly established ...

. He served awhile as the chief architect of the Engineering Corps at the Ministry of War. Later, Sultan

Mehmet V Mehmed V Reşâd ( ota, محمد خامس, Meḥmed-i ḫâmis; tr, V. Mehmed or ; 2 November 1844 – 3 July 1918) reigned as the 35th and penultimate Ottoman Sultan (). He was the son of Sultan Abdulmejid I. He succeeded his half-brother Ab ...

appointed him chief court architect. He also gave lectures at Sanayi-i Nefise Mekteb-i (today's

Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University The Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University ( tr, Mimar Sinan Güzel Sanatlar Üniversitesi, or MSGSÜ) is a Turkish public university dedicated to higher education in the fine arts. It is located in the Fındıklı neighbourhood of Beyoğlu, Istanbul ...

) and Mühendis Mekteb-i Alisi (today's

Istanbul Technical University Istanbul Technical University ( tr, İstanbul Teknik Üniversitesi, commonly referred to as ITU or The Technical University) is an international technical university located in Istanbul, Turkey. It is the world's third-oldest technical universit ...

). Vedat Tek was one of the first Turkish lecturers at the Academy of Fine Arts.

Architect of the Post and Telegraph Ministry

Vedat Tek became popular as an architect because of his project for the

Kastamonu Governor's Office The Kastamonu Governor's Office ( tr, Kastamonu Hükümet Konağı) is the main service building of the governor ( vali) of Kastamonu Province, Turkey. The historic building hosts also a city history museum. It is situated on 10 Aralık Cad. 20/1 ...

(1902). He was appointed architect for the Ministry of Post and Telegraph in 1905. His main assignment was the Istanbul Main Post Office, his largest achievement in his architectural career.

Chief architect of the Ottoman Palaces

Vedat Tek became the chief architect of the palaces after Sultan

Abdul Hamid II Abdülhamid or Abdul Hamid II ( ota, عبد الحميد ثانی, Abd ül-Hamid-i Sani; tr, II. Abdülhamid; 21 September 1842 10 February 1918) was the sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 31 August 1876 to 27 April 1909, and the last sultan to ...

left the throne in 1909 and was succeeded by

Mehmed V Mehmed V Reşâd ( ota, محمد خامس, Meḥmed-i ḫâmis; tr, V. Mehmed or ; 2 November 1844 – 3 July 1918) reigned as the 35th and penultimate Ottoman Sultan (). He was the son of Sultan Abdulmejid I. He succeeded his half-brother Ab ...

. As such, he restored about 20 palaces. But when

Mehmed VI Mehmed VI Vahideddin ( ota, محمد سادس ''Meḥmed-i sâdis'' or ''Vaḥîdü'd-Dîn''; tr, VI. Mehmed or /; 14 January 1861 – 16 May 1926), also known as Şahbaba () among the Osmanoğlu family, was the 36th and last Sultan of the ...

became sultan, he was dismissed.

Republic era

After the proclamation of the Republic of Turkey, Vedat Tek was called to

Ankara Ankara ( , ; ), historically known as Ancyra and Angora, is the capital of Turkey. Located in the central part of Anatolia, the city has a population of 5.1 million in its urban center and over 5.7 million in Ankara Province, maki ...

. He built the second building for the

Grand National Assembly of Turkey The Grand National Assembly of Turkey ( tr, ), usually referred to simply as the TBMM or Parliament ( tr, or ''Parlamento''), is the unicameral Turkish legislature. It is the sole body given the legislative prerogatives by the Turkish Cons ...

and the Gazi Pavilion there. While he was preparing plans for Ankara Palas, however, the project was taken out of his hands and given to

Mimar Kemaleddin Ahmet Kemalettin or Kemaleddin (1870-13 July 1927), widely known as Mimar Kemalettin (Kemalettin the Architect) and Kemalettin Bey, was a renowned Turkish architect the during the late Ottoman Empire and the early years of the newly established ...

Personal life

Vedat Tek was married to Firdevs. From this marriage, they had three daughters. Vedat Tek died in 1942 and was laid to rest at the

Edirnekapı Martyr's Cemetery The Edirnekapı Martyr's Cemetery ( tr, Edirnekapı Şehitliği), one of the largest burial grounds of Istanbul, Turkey, is located in the neighborhood of Edirnekapı of Eyüp district, in the European part of the city. It consists of an old, ...

in Istanbul.

Projects and buildings

He was the architect of various beautiful buildings in Istanbul; some of his notable projects and buildings including: *

İzmit Clock Tower The İzmit Clock Tower ( Turkish: ''İzmit Saat Kulesi'') in İzmit, Turkey is one of many clock towers that were built throughout the Ottoman Empire as a result of the decree which was sent to the provincial governors to commemorate the 25th an ...

İzmit İzmit () is a district and the central district of Kocaeli province, Turkey. It is located at the Gulf of İzmit in the Sea of Marmara, about east of Istanbul, on the northwestern part of Anatolia. As of the last 31/12/2019 estimation, the ...

(1901) *

Kastamonu Kastamonu is the capital district of the Kastamonu Province, Turkey. According to the 2000 census, population of the district is 102,059 of which 64,606 live in the urban center of Kastamonu. (Population of the urban center in 2010 is 91,012.) The ...

(1901), * Liman Han, Sirkeci * Istanbul Main Post Office, Sirkeci (1905–1909), *

Istanbul Land Registry and Cadastre Building ) , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = 34000 to 34990 , area_code = +90 212 (European side) +90 216 (Asian side) , registration_plate = 34 , blank_name_sec2 = GeoTLD , blank_ ...

, Sultanahmet (1908), * House of Vedat Tek,

Nişantaşı Nişantaşı is an upmarket, largely secular residential neighbourhood in the Şişli district on the European side of Istanbul, Turkey. Separated from Osmanbey and Pangaltı to the west by busy Halaskargazi Caddesi, it is a popular shopping ...

(1913) * Aviation Martyrs' Monument,

Fatih Fatih () is a district of and a municipality (''belediye'') in Istanbul, Turkey, and home to almost all of the provincial authorities (including the governor's office, police headquarters, metropolitan municipality and tax office) but not the co ...

(1914–1916) * Haydarpaşa Ferryboat Pier,

Haydarpaşa Haydarpaşa is a neighborhood within the Kadıköy and Üsküdar districts on the Asian part of Istanbul, Turkey. Haydarpaşa is named after Ottoman Vizier Haydar Pasha. The place, on the coast of Sea of Marmara, borders to Harem in the northwest ...

(1915–1917) * Moda Ferryboat Pier, Moda, Kadıköy (1917) (used since July 1, 2001 as a restaurant), * Doğancılar Public Park,

Üsküdar Üsküdar () is a large and densely populated district of Istanbul, Turkey, on the Anatolian shore of the Bosphorus. It is bordered to the north by Beykoz, to the east by Ümraniye, to the southeast by Ataşehir and to the south by Kadıköy; ...

(1920), * Çankaya Gazi Mansion,

(1924), * Second Turkish Grand National Assembly Building, Ankara (1924). (used since October 20, 1980 as the

Republic Museum Republic Museum (also known as "Second parliament Building of Turkey", tr, Cumhuriyet Müzesi) is a museum in Ankara, Turkey, which was the Turkish Parliament building from 1924 to 1960. Geography The museum is in the Ulus neighborhood of Ankar ...

) * Ankara Palas, Ankara - Designed in 1924 by him as Ministry of Health building, however completed in 1928 by

as a hotel for the members of the

Turkish Grand National Assembly The Grand National Assembly of Turkey ( tr, ), usually referred to simply as the TBMM or Parliament ( tr, or ''Parlamento''), is the unicameral Turkish legislature. It is the sole body given the legislative prerogatives by the Turkish Const ...

. It is used today as an official state

guest house A guest house (also guesthouse) is a kind of lodging. In some parts of the world (such as the Caribbean), guest houses are a type of inexpensive hotel-like lodging. In others, it is a private home that has been converted for the exclusive use ...

. The First National Architecture was characterized by the creation of entirely new designs with elements taken off the Seljuk and

Ottoman architecture Ottoman architecture is the architectural style that developed under the Ottoman Empire. It first emerged in northwestern Anatolia in the late 13th century and developed from earlier Seljuk Turkish architecture, with influences from Byzantine ...

. The buildings all over the country designed in that style had a sweeping overhanging roof, tiled panels on the façade, large arched windows and jutting semi-circular ornaments in common. Vedat Tek was known for his colorful and ornate style in architecture.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Tek, Vedat 1873 births 1942 deaths Architects from Istanbul Architects from the Ottoman Empire Galatasaray High School alumni Académie Julian alumni École Centrale Paris alumni École des Beaux-Arts alumni Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University faculty Istanbul Technical University faculty Burials at Edirnekapı Martyr's Cemetery First Turkish National architecture