According to the terms of Sakip Sabanci`s will, the Sabanci Foundation restored a historic building (an 1889 army barracks) in the historic city of Mardin (southeastern Turkey) so as to create the “Sakip Sabanci Mardin City Museum” and the “Dilek Sabanci Art Gallery” . The Museum opened its doors with a colorful event hosting over 800 people on October 1st, 2009. The Sakip Sabanci Mardin City Museum will display the history, tourism, architecture and visual values of Mardin, one of the few protected cities of the world. The long and narrow space, used for the City Museum as a walkway, includes “exhibition” units. The main principle of the design is to create an exhibition arrangement where the spatial unity under the cross arches can be perceived. In addition to the exhibition units, where the different dimensions of the authentic characteristics of the town can be viewed, the existing niches in the structure are also used as units where the handicrafts are displayed.

For further information: http://www.sabancivakfi.org/page/sakip-sabanci-mardin-city-museum-2