Traces of Istanbul
Dilan Emre
Urban life today is dictated by constant chaos, leaving little room for people to reflect on past memories that paved the city and themselves. Traces of these memories are tucked away in the noisy ambiance of the city, hidden by people’s blasé attitudes. This fast paced environment slows our sensibility towards the past, consequently drifting us further from what truly matters in life: the traces of your past.
The traces of my past are hidden in the sounds of Istanbul, my home. For Traces of Istanbul, I combined recordings of the city’s local vendors, trams, and its streets with collages of my old family photos and scents from the city’s past. I manipulated the form and color of original photos in Illustrator and used the Japanese bookbinding technique to give a more oriental feel to my project. The scent in the package includes Eastern smells like spices, roses, tea, and is meant to exude the audience with nostalgia as they read the images and listen to the sounds.
The box, once opened intends to radiate a warm feeling through the book’s soft color palette inspired by the 1960s of Istanbul. Tapping into the continuous regime change in Turkey, the book consists of both Islamic and Modern designs. This speaks to the identity struggle of the Turkish people, who are constantly going through change and acceptance. The project as a whole is intended to overbear the audience with nostalgia and remind them to embrace the past for future serenity.