In a context where place quality is regarded as one of the key and influential indicators in evaluating architectural spaces, Michel Foucault’s concept of heterotopia—first introduced in his theoretical writings—provides a broad and flexible framework for understanding multilayered, overlapping, complex, and meaningful spatial conditions. Heterotopia is not merely a type of physical environment or a specific spatial configuration; rather, it represents a critical and questioning perspective toward conventional and established structures of place. It opens the possibility of experiencing time, space, presence, and meaning in alternative, layered, and multidimensional ways, thereby offering new horizons for interpreting spatial conditions.



This article aims to clarify the relationship between heterotopia and place quality by conducting a conceptual and theoretical analysis of the position this idea holds within contemporary architecture. The research method is based on theoretical, comparative, and critical analysis, drawing upon the ideas of scholars such as Foucault, Norberg-Schulz, Deleuze, Soja, and Bachelard to thoroughly examine the various dimensions of heterotopia in relation to place quality. The findings of the study indicate that heterotopic spaces—with their multilayered, memory-oriented, fluid, experiential, and narrative-driven structures—possess distinctive and influential capacities for enhancing the quality of place and enriching users’ lived experiences.



Ultimately, by analyzing the intersections between heterotopia and place quality, the study proposes a conceptual model that illustrates how meaning, presence, memory, lived experience, and spatial legibility converge in the creation of meaningful, livable, and enduring places. Through these concepts, the article seeks to open a new and inspiring horizon for architectural design—one that, instead of producing placeless environments, moves toward creating places for being, living, perceiving, and remembering.