Against Oblivion

Abstract

TEKEL İzmir Cigarette Factory and tobacco ware houses lost gradually their functionality in XXI. Century; they have been abandoned forever and changed drastically by TEKEL privatization. These old buildings became fantastic places to realize several artistic activities there and they are transformed in nostalgic symbols to contemplate generally History of Modernism and specially Republic of Turkey's History. The aim of “TEKEL İzmir Cigarette Factory and tobacco warehouses photo-film project’’ is documenting last phase of decline period of these buildings and visualizing human traces. This project is a free research about İzmir. But to document and to interpret this kind of beauty is a very fascinating subject for photographers all around the world. In this context, each photographer has his/her reason in mnemonic or historical, alienated or opposite way and visual records of this kind conserve not only the blurred/erased past but process of oblivion itself

Keywords

• TEKEL, privatization, İzmir old tobacco warehouses, cigarette factory, documenting nothing, cultural memory, history