Certain Ways Out
by Irem Baskan
portfolio special mention call 'Urbanautica Institute Awards 2023', 2023
Category: Anthropology and Territories
At the most difficult moments in my life, I found myself wanting to disappear. In a quite peculiar way, I imagined my body shrinking, diving into the viewfinder of my camera, seeking some kind of solace from the world around me. When my old camera broke down two years ago, I started taking pictures with my mobile phone—a habit I continue to this day. 'Certain Ways Out' titles this visual diary, containing images I captured as I went about my way in the world. Often, I am drawn to the desolate corners of whichever city I’m in, taking a special interest in the gritty textures of the city—stains, barriers, traces left behind by humans. Observing through my quiet lens I document plant life, buildings, cars, images, and the geometries that all of these things make up. These are the moments in my daily life when I found myself perfectly in sync with my surroundings. Listening closely to what the world is telling me, I found a way to speak not only of myself but to discover the harmonies that exist around us. In a paradoxical way, the disappearing act I longed for became my voice and my way out.
also from Urbanautica Institute Awards 2023