ARA GÜLER'S “OLD CITY” EXHIBITION AT MERKUR 

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MERKUR presents the never before exhibited, colorful Istanbul photographs of Ara Güler, the master of Turkish photography, who have a distinguished place in the history of world photography.

 

Adopting the tradition of a social documentary filmmaker, Ara Güler's photographs constantly intersect with cinema and literature. There is a life, a movement in every photograph. Although Ara Güler's work covers the whole world, his heart remains in Istanbul, the city of his dreams, his birthplace. 

 

When you take a journey in Ara Güler's Old City, you can suddenly find yourself in a wooden house with a smoking chimney from the cobblestone pavements, and on a fishing boat where you can smell the sea from there. Where the fishing boat will go, what will happen in those narrow streets, the sound of the water, the smell of the air are under the control of the viewer. The artist presents a memory to those who could witness the period, and a visual tale to those who grew up with these stories. The past tense comes to life again…

 

“If it weren't for my Istanbul photos, those old days would have been forgotten today... Nothing remains of the Old City. The aesthetic of the city has changed. "Civilization is advancing, but people have lost their sense of beauty," said Ara Güler's Old City photos are waiting for you at MERKUR between 16 December 2013 and 15 January 2014.