Successive waves of internal migration have defined the social structure of large Turkish cities. Fleeing the poverty, harsh climates and political and ethnic tensions of the East, the exiles photographed by Kursat Bayhan in a seedy hotel in the Eminönü district of Istanbul, are mostly men, some of them unbelievably young, crammed together in bare rooms, roaming the busy streets and regaining their strength with big, full glasses of tea. His portraits alternate between close-ups and wider shots showing parts of the city, dilapidated, fragile, covered in snow.
These men have left their wives and children behind in the hope of providing a better life for them. Through brief testimonies scattered throughout the book, we learn that some of them have been there for twenty years, working excessive hours for pitiful sums of money. The printing is dull and pale, blending days and nights, the summer disappearing into the thick of winter, calling to mind an uncertain future.
Bound into a smallish and finely made book, the photographs approach the subject with respect. Their faces are severe, their bodies broken down, but their dignity remains. In these bitter conditions, Anatolia teaches resilience. Kursat Bayhan pays two visits there, at the beginning and end of the work, showing that where they’re going differs little from where they left.
Away from home
Kursat Bayhan
Introduction by Mary Ellen Mark
128 pages – 75 b/w illustrations
15 x 21 cm
ISBN 978-605-64204-0-5
35 €
