Istanbul, my love

No city can compare to Istanbul : at the confluence of two seas and straddling two continents, cut by the Bosphorus Strait and the Golden Horn – this estuary common to the rivers of Alibeyköy and Kaıthane –, meeting point between East and West, tradition and modernity.

I fell deeply in love with Istanbul almost 15 years ago, staying there once or twice a year since, but the beginnings of this love affair are actually older. I remember, as a child, having been amazed by the images of the city in Jules Dassin's film, Topkapi, which had then inflamed my imagination. Then, around the age of 25-30, I discovered Orhan Pamuk's novels, which were for me a revelation – especially The Black Book, where the city, more than just a backdrop for storytelling, is a character in its own right. Later, it is the black-and-white photos of the late Ara Güler – who still remains my favorite photographer today – who have finished feeding my fascination.

These are the smells that come to my mind first when I mention Istanbul : the iodine smell of Marmara sea, early in the morning, along the wharfs of Kennedy Avenue ; the fragrancy of jasmine, at night, near old rickety Yalıs along Bosphorus ; the perfume of spices at the Egyptian Bazaar ; the smell of grilled fish on Eminönü's docks ; the flavor of raki accompanied by meze.

My love affair with Istanbul has had its ups and downs. Six years ago, during the month of June 2013, I was in Taksim Square during the riots that shook the city for several weeks. I will not talk about it – after all, the purpose of this short introduction is not politics – but something broke. Friends have been arrested, thrown into prison unfairly. Others were injured by tear gas firing. The face of Istanbul had changed for me.

I have not stopped thinking about Istanbul in recent years. And yet, I never stopped pushing the moment when I would return. I imagined its streets, mentally remaking the path between the Spice Bazar and the Soliman Mosque through the maze of streets of Fatih ; I tasted the freshness of the Flower Passage on the hot summer days at Beyoğlu ; I imagined myself sitting on a bench, early in the morning, near the Ortaköy Mosque, contemplating the tankers that go back up the Bosphorus ; I was having a tea at Pierre Loti Cafe in the district of Eyüp or on the Üsküdar docks, facing the Maiden Tower, watching the last rays of the sun set fire to the domes of the mosques and ignite the torches of the minarets...

Finally, I returned to Istanbul during the month of June 2019. And as an old lover who contemplates the face of his beloved after years, my heart beat again very strong.

Here a small sample of the first pictures I brought back from my trip. More will come.

The following pictures were taken using different digital and analog cameras : a Pentax K1 Mark II, a Holga 120N and an old Pearl River 4-S Twin-lens reflex - a very underestimated and cheap camera, a copy of the famous Rolleiflex, but which delivers images of excellent quality.

Please, click to enlarge the pictures. Fine art prints are available on my website www.arnaudbathiard.com