Gökçen Erkilic is a cartographer, researcher, and designer who works closely with coastlines, rivers, seas, and further watery bodies to understand how they shape communities and data networks. She leads Coastliner Lab (CLLab), born in Istanbul’s shores to explore how mapping and collective knowledge can make situated stories of water-related conflicts and relationships visible.
The map of landslides after the earthquake that hit southeastern Turkey and Syria in February 2023.
© Gokcen Erkilic 2023
"Istanbul Coastline Atlas" reveals how human activities, often driven by economic or political agendas, directly impact the physical landscape of the Istanbul coastlines, leading to displacement of ecosystems and altering the relationship between land and water. Erkılıç uses a combination of archival maps, aerial photos, satellite imagery, and historical documents to visually demonstrate these changes over time. This approach highlights how urbanization can create spatial inequalities by prioritizing certain areas for development at the expense of others. The project also incorporates a participatory element, inviting individuals to engage in drawing and collaborative mapping, potentially providing a platform for marginalized voices to be heard in the discourse around urban development.
Workshop: Co-Mapping the Istanbul Coastline Atlas, Salt Galata. Photo: Mustafa Hazneci
Workshop: Co-Mapping the Istanbul Coastline Atlas, Salt Galata. Photo: Mustafa Hazneci
Istanbul Coastline Atlas Project Funded by Salt Research Funds 2024
Conflicted Waterscapes of Istanbul, Co-Mapping the Istanbul Coastline Atlas
Workshop: Co-Mapping the Istanbul Coastline Atlas, Salt Galata Photo: Mustafa Hazneci
Workshop: Co-Mapping the Istanbul Coastline Atlas, Salt Galata. Photo: Mustafa Hazneci
Workshop: Co-Mapping the Istanbul Coastline Atlas, Salt Galata
Istanbul Coastline Atlas Project Funded by Salt Research Funds 2024
Stitching Mare Nullius or Aren’t we all tired of othering? Artwork mapping the maritime disputes and bird migration routes in the Eastern Mediterranean. GIS, stitching on paper and interactive map. Yaz Publication Series, Edited by Zeynep Öz, Curated by Merve Yücel, Sharjah Biennial 16. - "Stitching Mare Nullius" tackles the issue of maritime disputes in the Eastern Mediterranean, a region rife with political tension and resource competition. Erkılıç critiques the "colonial depictions of the sea" and challenges the "partial and biased territorialisms" often presented by authorities. By juxtaposing maps created by journalists with historical port geography and data on oil and gas extraction, the project exposes the power dynamics at play in the region. This cartographic approach sheds light on how political and economic forces contribute to social inequalities by restricting access to resources and shaping narratives of ownership and control over maritime spaces.
Stitching Mare Nullius or Aren’t we all tired of othering?
Stitching Mare Nullius or Aren’t we all tired of othering?
Stitching Mare Nullius or Aren’t we all tired of othering?
Stitching Mare Nullius or Aren’t we all tired of othering?
Stitching Mare Nullius or Aren’t we all tired of othering?
Stitching Mare Nullius or Aren’t we all tired of othering?
Stitching Mare Nullius or Aren’t we all tired of othering?
Stitching Mare Nullius or Aren’t we all tired of othering?
Stitching Mare Nullius or Aren’t we all tired of othering?
Stitching Mare Nullius or Aren’t we all tired of othering?
Stitching Mare Nullius or Aren’t we all tired of othering?
Herbal Marginalia Diaspora: A Future Archive of Diasporic Gardening in Displaced Communities Erkılıç's "Herbal Marginalia Diaspora" project uses interactive mapping to document the gardening practices of displaced communities in Boston. By collecting information about plant origins, languages spoken by gardeners, recipes, and medicinal uses, the project aims to preserve and celebrate diasporic knowledge and stories, highlighting the connection between cultural heritage, displacement, and adaptation to new environments. This project uses mapping as a tool to document, preserve, and potentially empower marginalized communities.
Herbal Marginalia Diaspora: A Future Archive of Diasporic Gardening in Displaced Communities NU Lab for Texts, Maps, and Networks 2024
Herbal Marginalia Diaspora: A Future Archive of Diasporic Gardening in Displaced Communities
Herbal Marginalia Diaspora: A Future Archive of Diasporic Gardening in Displaced Communities
Herbal Marginalia Diaspora: A Future Archive of Diasporic Gardening in Displaced Communities
Herbal Marginalia Diaspora: A Future Archive of Diasporic Gardening in Displaced Communities
Herbal Marginalia Diaspora: A Future Archive of Diasporic Gardening in Displaced Communities
Herbal Marginalia Diaspora: A Future Archive of Diasporic Gardening in Displaced Communities
Herbal Marginalia Diaspora: A Future Archive of Diasporic Gardening in Displaced Communities
The Map of Invisible Cities
The Map of Invisible Cities - An interactive map of places in Istanbul where I thought I saw Invisible Cities - “Calvino 100+1” Curated by Bilge Bal, Orhan Cem Doğan, Sevil Enginsoy Ekinci, Kıraathane Istanbul Literature House, Feb 23 – Mar 22 2024, Istanbul.
The Map of Invisible Cities
The Map of Invisible Cities
The Map of Invisible Cities
The Map of Invisible Cities
This is not a line: Flat Land / Landfill / Whirlpool 07’35’’ cartographic video exhibited at Burası/This Place Exhibition, Curated by Kevser Güler Yapı Kredi Culture and Arts Center. 2021, Istanbul.
This is not a line: Flat Land / Landfill / Whirlpool 07’35’’ cartographic video exhibited at Burası/This Place Exhibition, Curated by Kevser Güler Yapı Kredi Culture and Arts Center. 2021, Istanbul.
This is not a line: Flat Land / Landfill / Whirlpool
This is not a line: Flat Land / Landfill / Whirlpool
This is not a line: Flat Land / Landfill / Whirlpool
This is not a line: Flat Land / Landfill / Whirlpool
This is not a line: Flat Land / Landfill / Whirlpool
This is not a line: Flat Land / Landfill / Whirlpool
This is not a line: Flat Land / Landfill / Whirlpool
This is not a line: Flat Land / Landfill / Whirlpool
Istanbul Coastline Atlas
Istanbul Coastline Atlas
Energy Lines Across Turkey and Black Sea Coastline Atlas - Trading and Cultural Gateways Across the Water: The Ports of the Black Sea Panel: Davis Center for Eastern European Studies, Harvard University
Energy Lines Across Turkey and Black Sea Coastline Atlas
Energy Lines Across Turkey and Black Sea Coastline Atlas
The Book of the Sea Delta 5’30’’ video poem featuring Ethel Adnan, screened at “At Land & Sea: Topographical Imagination and the Moving Image” Istanbul Bilgi University.
The Book of the Sea Delta
The Book of the Sea Delta
The Book of the Sea Delta
The Book of the Sea Delta
The Book of the Sea Delta
Erkılıç, G. (2024) Power, Othering, and Coastlines: The Cartographic Investigation of Coastliner Lab in Istanbul Materia Arquitectura 26, Issue: Resistance Cartography – August 2024.
Erkılıç, G. (2021) “For Thousands of Years, Waters Delineated the Destiny of This City and Its People”: A Material Cartography of the Coastlines and the Shaping of Istanbul’s Port Geography, Yıllık: Annual of Istanbul Studies, Issue: 3, Istanbul Research Institute Publications.
Darzanà: İki Tersane Bir Vasıta / Two Arsenals One Vessel Exhibition Book 15th International Architecture Exhibition La Biennale di Venezia: Reporting From the Front Istanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts (IKSV)
Herbal Marginalia Diaspora: Various Types of Herbs You Want to Know Powers Of
Herbal Marginalia Diaspora: Various Types of Herbs You Want to Know Powers Of