By Yildiz Nevin Gundogmus
ANKARA (AA) - Turkey’s president this weekend will cut the ribbon on an exhibit featuring the works of renowned Turkish-Armenian photographer Ara Guler in Kyoto, Japan.
Following successful runs in London and Paris, works by the late Guler works will be exhibited at an 800-year-old Tofukuji temple from June 30 to July 10, said the communications team for President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Erdogan is in currently in Osaka, Japan for a G20 Leaders’ Summit.
Curated by the Turkish Presidency, the exhibit includes Guler’s iconic photos and portraits of legendary Turkish writer Yasar Kemal and famous folk musician and poet Asik Veysel, as well as international figures such as Pablo Picasso, Salvador Dali, Indira Gandhi, Mother Teresa, Brigitte Bardot, and Sophia Loren.
A booklet on the exhibition in Turkish, English, and Japanese will be given to leaders at the G20 summit.
After Japan, the exhibit will proceed to the National Museum of the American Indian in New York City at the end of September, coinciding with the UN General Assembly.
- A life behind the lens
Guler was born in Istanbul in 1928. Throughout his life, he was a significant global representative of Turkey's creative photography.
He worked as a Near East photojournalist for Time Life magazine in 1956, for Paris Match in 1958, and also for German magazine Stern.
Magnum Photos also published Guler's photos globally, and in 1961, he became the first Turkish member of the American Society of Magazine Photographers (ASMP).
In 1962, Guler was awarded the Master of Leica title in Germany and was featured in a special issue of Swiss Camera magazine, one of the world's leading photography publications.
He also photographed the images for Lord Kinross' 1971 book on Hagia Sophia and the cover photo for a book marking the 90th birthday of Spanish artist Pablo Picasso.
His images on art and art history were published by Time Life, Horizon, Newsweek, and Skira Publishing House.
Guler's photos of the works of famed Ottoman architect Mimar Sinan were published in the 1992 book "Sinan: Architect of Suleyman the Magnificent."
In 2002, he was awarded the Legion of Honor Order of Arts and Letters by the French government, and in 2009 he received La Médaille de la Ville de Paris from the Paris Municipality.
Guler’s many other honors include the Presidency of the Republic of Turkey Culture and Arts Grand Award in 2005, the Republic of Turkey Ministry of Culture and Tourism Culture and Arts Service Award in 2008, the Turkish Grand National Assembly Superior Service Award in 2009, the U.S. Lucie Awards Lifetime Achievement Award in 2009 and the Republic of Turkey Ministry of Culture and Tourism Culture and Arts Grand Award in 2011.
He passed away on Oct. 17, 2018 at age 90.