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In this project, which I started working on at the end of 2019 while living in Istanbul, I focused on the Fatih district in Istanbul, the oldest and longest inhabited area in the city.

Once an area with a very ethnically mixed population, now the district is mainly inhabited by Turks, with only small groups of ethnic minorities remaining. In addition to Turks, Armenians, Greeks and Jews used to live in this district, all of them leaving their own cultural traces. Due to the changing political climate and past incidents, the minority groups gradually disappeared. Almost none of them still resides in the Fatih district. The only remnants are the buildings, dwellings, and foreign inscriptions on buildings that remind us of their presence.
As one of the area’s under pressure and rapidly changing, I felt the urge and necessity to observe and document the last traces of this historic and culturally rich district that is on the verge of disappearing completely. 























Als multi-etnische gemeenschappen sneuvelen, dan worden het bastions van het nationalisme van de groep die overblijft - het lijkt een wetmatigheid van de twintigste eeuw.

Olaf Tempelman
Omweg naar Istanbul - De kusten van de Zwarte Zee