PROJECTS
The Last Stablemen of the Island
Büyükada, Istanbul — 2014
For over a century, horse-drawn carriages were the only way to move across Büyükada — Istanbul’s largest Prince’s Island. Behind the hills, invisible to tourists, a community of seasonal workers from eastern Turkey lived alongside the horses in makeshift shelters built from canvas and scrap wood. In January 2020, Istanbul’s Metropolitan Assembly voted to ban all carriages. The horses were removed, the stables dismantled, the stablemen disappeared. This series was shot in 2014. It is their only record.
Ederlezi
Edirne, 2009
Every spring, the Roma community of Edirne holds one of the largest Hıdırellez celebrations in Turkey. This is not a folkloric reconstruction — it is a party that has been happening, in some form, for centuries. The drums start and nobody needs permission to dance.
Kurban — The Sacrifice
Feriköy, Istanbul — 2009
Every year, three brothers drove their flock from eastern Turkey to Istanbul for Kurban Bayramı — the Feast of Sacrifice. They lived among the animals in a makeshift shelter for four days. Today, the empty lots of Feriköy are luxury developments. The brothers left no trace. This series was shot in 2009.