Erdem Varol
Istanbul, Turkey
Bio:
Erdem Varol, 1988, İstanbul.
I stay alive by walking, taking photographs, drawing, and writing. My works are the result of my everyday encounters shaped by my desire to not resist the emotions that arise through the process and wanting to express myself sharply as opposed to working to define something in a fixed way. Going beyond just moments compressed through visuals and layers of texts, I invite my viewers to see these works as documents that hold clues into my perception, muscle memory, and errors.
Where were you born and where are you based?
I was born and based in Istanbul, Turkey.
Tell us about Istanbul, what makes the city so special for you?
My biggest inspiration is Istanbul… It is a city with different stories at each and every corner. Even when I travel to other cities, I find myself taking photographs influenced by Istanbul. On the other hand, I think I am beginning to resemble the city where I live as years go by.
What made you get into self publishing and what are the benefits of doing it as a photographer?
To me the self publishing way is a kind of freedom freedom. Books are a place that you can create everything from nothing. The most pleasant stage for me is the selection and editing process of the photographs. You embark upon a journey to tell your own story freely, by selecting and lining up photographs from an artistic objective with no return. Once you are done with the selection, you have almost liberated the photos!
We know you take a lot of inspiration from Istanbul, is there anywhere you haven’t been that you would love to shoot and explore?
It could be any place but first I need to stay there long enough to smell the culture, people, the street, stories.
What are you working on?
Currently I’m shooting times in Istanbul. Lots of things have changed even my emotion. Now I’m trying to keep it all.
What made you initially pick up a camera?
It’s like breathing, spontaneous, so thats why there is no extra motivation for me to do so.
Do you have any exhibitions / publications planned for 2020?
There was… we are going through fucking bad times!
Where can we find you online?
