Ara Güler (1928 - 2018)

Ara Güler  (born  Aram Terteryan  ( Armenian :  Արա Կիւլէր ); 16 August 1928 – 17 October 2018) was an Armenian-Turkish  photojournalist , nicknamed "the Eye of Istanbul" or "the Photographer of Istanbul". [1] [2] [3]  He was "one of Turkey's few internationally known photographers". [4] Contents 1 Early life 2 Photography career 3 Güler's 'philosophy' of photography 4 Death 5 Publications 6 Bibliography 7 Awards 8 References 9 External links Early life [ edit ] Güler was born in  Beyoğlu ,  Istanbul ,  Turkey , in 1928 to  Armenian  parents. He studied at the local  Getronagan Armenian High School . [5]  Owner of a  pharmacy  on  Istiklal Avenue , his father had a wide circle of friends from the art world of the period. Ara Güler's early contact with this world inspired him to embark on a career in cinema. During his high school years, he jobbed in movie studios and attended drama courses held by  Muhsin Ertuğrul , the founder of modern Turkish theater. However, he abandoned cinema in favor of journalism, joining the staff of the newspaper  Yeni Istanbul  as  photojournalist  in 1950 and studying economics at the  University of Istanbul  at the same time. He then transferred to another newspaper,  Hürriyet . (Güler is not related to the royal Guleria family.) [3] [6] Photography career [ edit ] In 1958, the American magazine company  Time–Life  opened a branch in Turkey, and Güler became its first correspondent for the  Near East . Soon he received commissions from  Paris Match ,  Stern ,  and  The Sunday Times  in London.  After completing his military service in 1961, Güler was employed by the Turkish magazine  Hayat  as head of its photographic department. [6] [3] About this time, he met  Henri Cartier-Bresson  and  Marc Riboud , who recruited him for the  Magnum Photos  agency, which he joined (though later withdrew from). He was presented in the British  1961 Photography Yearbook. Also in that year, he was accepted as the only Turkish member to the American Society of Magazine Photographers (ASMP) (today called the  American Society of Media Photographers ). The  Swiss  magazine  Camera  honored him with a special issue. [6] [3] In the 1960s, Güler's photographs were used to illustrate books by notable authors and were displayed at various exhibitions throughout the world. His works were exhibited in 1968 in  10 Masters of Color Photography  at the New York  Museum of Modern Art  and at  Photokina  Fair in  Cologne , Germany. [7] [ better source needed ]  His book  Türkei  was published in Germany in 1970. His photos on art and art history were used in  Time ,   Life ,   Horizon  and  Newsweek  and publications of Skira of Switzerland. [6] [3] Güler traveled on assignment to  Iran ,  Kazakhstan ,  Afghanistan ,  Pakistan ,  India ,  Kenya ,  New Guinea ,  Borneo , as well as all parts of Turkey. [8]  In the 1970s he photographed politicians and artists such as  Indira Gandhi ,  Maria Callas ,  John Berger ,  Bertrand Russell ,  Willy Brandt ,  Alfred Hitchcock , [2]   Ansel Adams ,  Imogen Cunningham ,  Marc Chagall ,  Salvador Dalí [2]  and  Pablo Picasso . [6]  Some critics [ who? ]  consider his most renowned photographs to be his melancholic black and white pictures taken mostly with a  Leica  camera in Istanbul, mainly in the 1950s and 1960s. [9] He has exhibited frequently since then, and also had his work published in special supplements. International publishers have featured his photographs. Güler's work is collected by the  National Library of France  in  Paris ; the  George Eastman Museum  in  Rochester, New York ;  University of Nebraska-Lincoln  Sheldon Memorial Art Gallery;  Museum Ludwig Köln , and  Das imaginäre Photo-Museum ,  Köln . [10] In the 1970s, Güler worked in film, directing the  documentary   The End of the Hero  (1975). It was based on a fictional account of the dismantling of the  World War I  veteran  battlecruiser   TCG Yavuz . [11] Güler's archive contains some 800,000  photographic slides . [2] [12] Güler's 'philosophy' of photography [ edit ] Güler attached the greatest importance to human presence in his photographs and described himself as a "visual historian". " When I'm taking a picture of Aya Sofia, what counts is the person passing by who stands for life ", he said. He believed that photography should provide a memory of people, of their lives and especially their suffering. While he considers that art lies, he believes that photography can only reflect reality. He embraced the identity of a photojournalist [13]  because he did not attach much value to photography as an artistic pursuit, which to him would have little value. He did not consider photography to be an art. [14] Death [ edit ] Güler died of a  heart attack  on 17 October 2018. [15]  He had been suffering from kidney failure and was being treated with  dialysis . [15] Publications [ edit ] Ara Güler's Creative Americans. Ara Güler: Photographs. Ara Güler's Movie Directors. Sinan: Architect of Süleyman the Magnificent. Living in Turkey. Bibliography [ edit ] Öster om Eufrat, I Kurdernas Land  (Swedish) by Barbro Karabuda, Tidens Förlag, Stockholm, Sweden (1960) 102pp Marianna Norris,  Young Turkey, Children of Turkey at work and at play , (English), New York: Dodd, Mead, (1964) Topkapı Sarayı - Sultan Portreleri , (Turkish) Doğan Kardeş Yayınları, Istanbul, Turkey (1967) Turkei , (German) Terra Magica, Munich, Germany (1970) Hagia Sophia , (English) by Lord Kinross, New York: Newsweek Books, 1972 The Splendor of Islamic Calligraphy , (English) Thames & Hudson, London, UK (1976) Harems , (English) Chene & Hudson, London, UK (1976) Fotoğraflar , (Turkish) Milliyet Yayınları, Istanbul, Turkey (1980) Turan Erol,  Fikret Mualla , (Turkish), Cem Yayınları, Istanbul, Turkey (1980) Turan Erol,  Bedri Rahmi , (Turkish), Cem Yayınları, Istanbul, Turkey (1984) Aptullah Kuran ,  Mimar Sinan  (Turkish), Hürriyet Vakfı Yayınları, Istanbul, Turkey (1986) Aptullah Kuran,  Mimar Sinan , (English), Washington D.C.: Institute of Turkish Studies, 1987 Ara Güler'in Sinamacıları , (Turkish) Hil Yayınları, Istanbul, Turkey (1989) [16] Halkarnas Balıkçısı (Cevat Şakir Kabaağaçlı), T.C. Dışişleri,  The Sixth Continent , Bakanlığı Kültür Dairesi, Ankara, Turkey (1991) John Freely, Augusto Romano Burelli,  Sinan: Architect of Suleyman the Magnificent and the Ottoman Golden Age , (English), London: Thames and Hudson, 1992.  ISBN   0-500-34120-6 Stephane Yerasimos ,  Living in Turkey , (English), London and New York: Thames & Hudson, 1992 Stephane Yerasimos,  Demeures Ottomans de Turquie , (French), Paris: Albin Michel, 1992 Stephane Yerasimos,  Turkish Style ,(English), Singapore: Archipelago Press, 1992 Eski İstanbul Anıları , (Turkish), Dünya Şirketler Grubu, Istanbul, Turkey (1994) [17] A Photographical Sketch on Lost Istanbul , (English), Dünya Şirketler Grubu, Istanbul, Turkey (1994) Bir Devir Böyle Geçti, Kalanlara Selam Olsun , (Turkish), Ana Yayıncılık, Istanbul, Turkey (1994) Yitirilmiş Renkler , (Turkish), Dünya Şirketler Grubu, İstanbul, Turkey (1995) [17] Yüzlerinde Yeryüzü  (Turkish), Ana Yayıncılık, Istanbul, Turkey (1995) [17] Babil'den Sonra Yaşayacağız , (Turkish) Aras Yayınları, Istanbul, Turkey (1996) [17] Awards [ edit ] 1962: Master of Leica [18] Légion d'honneur , France [18] 1999: "Photographer of the Century", Turkey [13] 2004: Honorary doctorate,  Yıldız Technical University , Istanbul [18] 2005:  Grand Prize of Culture and Arts , Turkey [18] 2009:  Lucie Award  for Lifetime Achievement, New York [19] References [ edit ] ^   " ' Eye of Istanbul' Ara Guler dies at 90" .  BBC News . 18 October 2018 . Retrieved  18 October  2018  – via BBC News. ^  Jump up to: a   b   c   d   Larson, Vanessa H. (4 February 2014).  "Photography of Ara Güler captures a forgotten Turkey" .  The Guardian . Retrieved  18 October  2018 . ^  Jump up to: a   b   c   d   e   "Ara Güler Kimdir?"  (in Turkish). Ara Güler . Retrieved  4 December  2009 . ^   Kettmann, Steve (25 September 2005).  "A Photo Show on a Pogrom 50 Years Ago Is Itself Attacked by a Mob" .  New York Times . Retrieved  23 February  2013 . ^   "Getronagan Armenian High School" .  Getronagan Armenian High School: Official Website . Retrieved  11 December  2012 . ^  Jump up to: a   b   c   d   e   "Ara Güler'in Hayatı"  (in Turkish). fotograf.net.  Archived  from the original on 29 November 2009 . Retrieved  4 December  2009 . ^   "Ara Güler" .  Famous Photographers . ^   "Dosyalar-Ara Güler"  (in Turkish). Yapı. Archived from  the original  on 2 October 2011 . Retrieved  4 December  2009 . ^   "In pictures: 'Eye of Istanbul' photographer Ara Guler dies at 90" . BBC. 18 October 2018. ^   "Ara Güler"  (in Turkish). Yapı Kredi Kültür Sanat Yayıncılık . Retrieved  4 December  2009 . ^   Karadenizli, Elif (14 October 2005).  "Ankara University Faculty of Communications hosts world famous photographers" .  Hürriyet Daily News . Retrieved  4 December  2009 . ^   Kürkçüoğlu, S. Sabri (May 2002).  "Türkiye'de Yüzyılın Fotoğrafçısı Ara Güler ile Urfa, Harran ve Nemrut Üzerine Söyleşi"  (in Turkish). Hezarfen-Paralax. Archived from  the original  on 10 December 2009 . Retrieved  4 December  2009 . ^  Jump up to: a   b   Nimit Seker, "A City, Beautifully Blemished", review of  Ara Güler's Istanbul , Qantara.de, 26 August 2010 ^   "Ara Guler: Visual chronicler of our age". Fusun OZBILGEN.  http://www.armeniapedia.org/index.php?title=Ara_Guler ^  Jump up to: a   b   "Legendary Turkish photographer Ara Güler loses battle for life at 90" .  Daily Sabah . Retrieved  18 October  2018 . ^   "Ara Güler Kitapları"  (in Turkish). Yem Kitabevi. Archived from  the original  on 18 July 2011 . Retrieved  4 December  2009 . ^  Jump up to: a   b   c   d   "Ara Güler Kitapları"  (in Turkish). fotograf.net . Retrieved  4 December  2009 . ^  Jump up to: a   b   c   d   "Ara Güler'in Aldığı Başlıca Ödülleri"  (in Turkish). fotograf.net.  Archived  from the original on 29 October 2009 . Retrieved  4 December  2009 . ^   "7th Annual Lucie Awards" . Women In Photography International . Retrieved  4 December  2009 . Additional sources Pamuk, Orhan (1 November 2018).  " ' I Like Your Photographs Because They Are Beautiful ' " .  New York Times . Retrieved  5 November  2018 . Orga, Ateş (16 January 2019).  ARA GÜLER In Memoriam ,  Turkish Area Studies Review  No 33, Spring 2019, pp 67-71. External links [ edit ] Official website Ara Güler  at fotograf.net  ‹See Tfd› (in Turkish) ARA GÜLER: Photojournalist  on  YouTube "Vintage Istanbul - in pictures"  at  The Guardian

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