’Stations’ London project follows migration process
Güncelleme Tarihi:
by Ceylan Yeğinsu
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Şubat 18, 2009 00:00
ISTANBUL - For Turkish photographer Muammer Yanmaz the underground world of the subway is a canvas for a unique international photography project based on the recent global debate surrounding immigration.
Entering the subway is often a mundane experience where people are confined to only one option of taking the metro to reach a destination. For Turkish photographer Muammer Yanmaz, however, the underground world of the subway is much more. It is a canvas for a unique photography project based on the global debate surrounding immigration.
The " 40 stations" photography project started in 2001 when Yanmaz selected 40 Turkish individuals living in Paris to be photographed in various Paris subway stations. Yanmaz’s aim was to capture a shot of two dimensions Ğ at the forefront are their faces and what remains behind are mirrors of the city they dwell in, namely the subway stations. The project looks at the role of migration and what Yanmaz calls the "phenomenon of individuals crossing borders and contributing to the mixing and enriching of cultures."
Following Paris, the "40 Stations" project was carried out in New York. Just like the Paris project, 40 Stations New York photographed 40 Turkish-Americans who live in New York in a subway station of their choice. The project was co- sponsored by the Turkish Culture and Tourism Office, the Marmara Manhattan and Mavi Jeans and captures a whole range of people, not just intellectuals like in the Paris Exhibition.
The exhibition is comprised of a random selection of people with one common denominator, their native origin. The subjects of the photographs are not caught off guard and therefore they all pose for the camera as they please. Yanmaz said the reason these 40 people stand out from others on the subway is because they are presented with another option different to the one of traveling on a train which makes each shot unique because each person has a different reaction to the camera.
After New York, the 40 stations project was brought to London and took a new approach once again. In this project, the British Council commissioned British photographer Annabel Elston, from the London Visual Arts team, to photograph 40 British people living in Istanbul, Ankara and İzmir. The new approach has made the project reciprocal as it reflects elements from both British and Turkish cultures.
Open to interpretation
Despite the similar subject matter, the photographs are strikingly different: Yanmaz’s are black and white and emphasize the architectural context, while Annabel’s focus on the individuals themselves. The photographs explore subjects of identity, migration and the roles of Turkish and UK individuals in two different major metropolitan centers. In addition each photograph is accompanied by a short text capturing the subject's relationship to their adopted country. The photographs in Yanmaz’s exhibition stand-alone and are therefore more open to individual interpretation.
Exhibited in London since May, the 40 stations London project is coming to Istanbul and will be displayed at ARTANE between Feb. 21 and March 14. Where as each train line of the metro has a final destination and every journey comes to an end, the 40 stations project does not end in Istanbul. The inspiring socio-photographic project created by Yanmaz and Elston is an ongoing depiction of the forever-moving process of migration.
The " 40 stations" photography project started in 2001 when Yanmaz selected 40 Turkish individuals living in Paris to be photographed in various Paris subway stations. Yanmaz’s aim was to capture a shot of two dimensions Ğ at the forefront are their faces and what remains behind are mirrors of the city they dwell in, namely the subway stations. The project looks at the role of migration and what Yanmaz calls the "phenomenon of individuals crossing borders and contributing to the mixing and enriching of cultures."
Following Paris, the "40 Stations" project was carried out in New York. Just like the Paris project, 40 Stations New York photographed 40 Turkish-Americans who live in New York in a subway station of their choice. The project was co- sponsored by the Turkish Culture and Tourism Office, the Marmara Manhattan and Mavi Jeans and captures a whole range of people, not just intellectuals like in the Paris Exhibition.
The exhibition is comprised of a random selection of people with one common denominator, their native origin. The subjects of the photographs are not caught off guard and therefore they all pose for the camera as they please. Yanmaz said the reason these 40 people stand out from others on the subway is because they are presented with another option different to the one of traveling on a train which makes each shot unique because each person has a different reaction to the camera.
After New York, the 40 stations project was brought to London and took a new approach once again. In this project, the British Council commissioned British photographer Annabel Elston, from the London Visual Arts team, to photograph 40 British people living in Istanbul, Ankara and İzmir. The new approach has made the project reciprocal as it reflects elements from both British and Turkish cultures.
Open to interpretation
Despite the similar subject matter, the photographs are strikingly different: Yanmaz’s are black and white and emphasize the architectural context, while Annabel’s focus on the individuals themselves. The photographs explore subjects of identity, migration and the roles of Turkish and UK individuals in two different major metropolitan centers. In addition each photograph is accompanied by a short text capturing the subject's relationship to their adopted country. The photographs in Yanmaz’s exhibition stand-alone and are therefore more open to individual interpretation.
Exhibited in London since May, the 40 stations London project is coming to Istanbul and will be displayed at ARTANE between Feb. 21 and March 14. Where as each train line of the metro has a final destination and every journey comes to an end, the 40 stations project does not end in Istanbul. The inspiring socio-photographic project created by Yanmaz and Elston is an ongoing depiction of the forever-moving process of migration.