Every morning at 7 am, while the rest of the family sleeps, my grandfather slips into the murky waters of the Sea of Marmara. Upon his return, his unwavering declaration, 'crystal clear, better than the Aegean,' echoes through our summer home. This gentle fiction, a white lie told more to himself than to us, captures the essence of the summer inhabitants of Marmara—a blend of subtle deceptions and enduring traditions.
Nestled between the ebbs and flows of this very sea lies a different kind of heritage, one less spoken of—the summer retreats of Turkey's middle class. These retreats, conveniently close to large cities like Istanbul, Bursa, and Edirne, serve as a sanctuary for those whose lives are entwined with the bustling urban centers. 'Reflections by Marmara' is a chronicle of these coastal enclaves, where the waters serve not only as a conduit for international commerce but also as a backdrop to a summer routine that continues to weather the tides of change.
In towns like Narlı, Şarköy, Bandırma, and Marmara Ereğlisi, summer homes stand as testaments to the simpler pleasures of a season long awaited. Notably, these towns, interwoven with the region's industrial activities, present a unique juxtaposition of leisure and labor. This project aims to capture the essence of summers past and present, a ritual as personal to my family as it is to the collective memory of countless others who seek reprieve along these shores.
Initially begun as personal visual notes about summer, this project evolved to encompass the broader narrative of the area, intertwining my own experiences with the shared history of the region. Shot on the medium format Portra 400 film, the images in this series are steeped in nostalgia, reminiscent of the unchanged pace of life, seemingly paused in a bygone era. Here, the narrative is not driven by the grandeur of the Sea's geographical significance but by the quieter stories of communal leisure and the subtle dynamics of a community in seasonal flux.
Yet, as unwavering as these summer traditions appear, they exist in the shadow of modernity and environmental challenges. The increasing pollution, a harbinger of change, looms over the Marmara, threatening the purity of these annual pilgrimages. Despite this, the spirit of the summers here remains—a spirit captured through portraits and familiar scenes, revealing a world within a world, resilient in its simplicity and warmth.
'Reflections by Marmara' thus stands as a visual essay, an ode to a summertime culture that defines as much as it is defined by the Sea of Marmara. It is a narrative not of grand historical events but of the understated and enduring connections between a people and their cherished sea.