Vedat Tek House

While strolling through the streets of Istanbul, you’d be hard-pressed to miss this gorgeous house. Its odd, yet pleasing, hodgepodge of different styles gives the structure a look you won’t find elsewhere on the block.

Built between 1913 and 1914 in an eclectic style, the building was named after its creator, who happened to be one of the major Turkish architects of the 20th century. Vedat Tek was one of the leading forces behind the First Turkish National Architectural Movement. The movement, which began in the early years of the Republic of Turkey, aimed to create a new form of national architecture that drew upon Seljuk and Ottoman styles.

Vedat Tek’s work is scattered throughout Istanbul and beyond. He’s the mastermind behind iconic buildings like the Istanbul Main Post Office and the Kastamonu Governor’s Office. But he didn’t save his architectural flair for big-budget projects. Even the house he built for his family is a gorgeous piece of architectural eye candy.

Asymmetrical in design, his family home is recognisable from afar. With its motifs of classical Turkish ornamentation and a touch of Western influence, it can be said to embrace the East and the West in equal measure, making for an aesthetically pleasing mishmash of both architecture and culture. Intricate patterns, geometric cutouts, and little pops of brilliant turquoise pigment make the building a definite stunner.

In 1950, one of Vedat Tek’s son-in-laws transformed the house into a meyhane (pub). It’s still open today, letting people wine and dine within the former home of one of Turkey’s architectural greats.