Botanist Fem Güçlütürk and Sezer Savaşlı, who has a passion for motorcycles, welcome Kita to their house: a concrete sanctuary full of pure forms and natural light.
Photography: İbrahim Özbunar
Words: Begüm Çelebi
Fem, former PR Executive, has a special relationship with nature and we follow her through the plant atelier Labofem for a while. Sezer has also an atelier focused on extreme sports and he creates several contents about them on his Youtube channel. In a word, Çıtlık House is the creative space of their dreams, Labofem and Vanduro.
Tucked away on land separated by a hill from the village of Çıtlık, this house takes its name from the countryside nearby. Designed by PIN Architects, Çıtlık House is the cocoon of the couple since 2017.
The couple welcomes us into their home on a shiny day. This monumentally yet warm structure has been embracing them every season with its all bare walls, wide openings, extensive garden and beautiful natural light.
When we ask about her daily routines, she tells us that she does not call it a routine, it is a seasonal flow and goes on: “I start the day very early, even Pudi, our dog, does not wake up then. I do painting and depending on weather conditions, I am busy with the greenhouse and garden. When Pudi wakes up, we walk into the forest. We go to the bazaar, to Azmak for swimming and spend time with our friends. Days, months and years seem to follow each other as if they say “lived happily ever after’.” The daily flow for Sezer is a little more dynamic according to his passion yet he says his constant routine is to work on the computer.
Fem & Sezer show us around… When we want to learn about the heart of this house, she points out that the house is the heart of itself since it lies in a forest on its own. The spaces are not clearly separated from each other through doors. Because the doors are the rare details in this house, even in the bathrooms. Therefore, the positive circulation between the rooms seems to support Fem’s opinion too. The idea that there is no border between spaces is reflected in their habits according to seasons.
In summer, I sometimes prefer the bed in the guest room. If Sezer is watching something in the living room, that room is ideal for reading a book and taking a nap. In winter, I have a floor mat in front of the stove. I like lying out there.
I like painting the most in this house, and the thing I dislike the most is cooking. I love to eat well, but I don't spend my time preparing it.
The brooms, masks, under-glass drawings, slippers, voodoo dolls, drawings, plants and books she has collected from all over the world over the years are among the details that Fem expresses herself in this house. She displays these meaningful things wherever possible at home.
“We do not buy any design just because it is popular or assertive.We like simple, functional and minimal pieces.”
Simple as well has design language, practical as well durable and aesthetic as well-balanced.
For the couple, it is important that their friends who come to visit them adapt the rules of the house. More, it is a pleasure to welcome their friends who love cooking in their home and gather around the table in their garden.
