Reading public space through today's social media: Eskişehir Adalar Region Porsuk River front

Space, which constitutes the essence of architecture, is not only a physical place; it is also a concept that contains experiences, emotions and thoughts. Public spaces in cities have an important role in reflecting the identity of the society. Like these public spaces, public spheres are areas where communities express their feelings and thoughts. In this thesis, it is aimed to read public space in the age of technology through the data obtained from social media platforms, a digital public sphere. In this study, which examines the usability of the interaction of people through social media platforms to read public space, the Porsuk River bank of Eskişehir Adalar Region is examined. The importance of the Porsuk River as a water element for the city of Eskişehir is stated and the importance of the Adalar Region is emphasized. Considering the use of the Instagram platform in Turkey, an analysis covering the years 2019-2023 was conducted. The analysis, which was conducted by examining the photos shared publicly through location tags, focused on location-indicating concepts such as Eskişehir, Adalar, and Porsuk. Instagram location tags provide valuable clues to understand the perception and interpretation of the Porsuk Riverbank in the Adalar Region. In the study, it is observed that certain points on the Porsuk Riverbank in the Adalar Region stand out in terms of visualization and photographing. Social media allows us to read how the Porsuk River bank of the Adalar Region, which is a public space, is perceived and displayed through location tags and shared photographs. In this thesis, social media functions as a tool that enables the reading of public space, which expands the readability framework of public space. The inclusion of social media platforms in the reading of public space draws attention to current architectural debates and the impact of social media in our lives and develops a new perspective. In this context, it is envisaged that the study can enrich the existing literature by contributing to similar studies related to the reading of public space.