Dark Moon

In Dark Moon, Ahmet Polat sheds light on the lives of Afro-Turks, many of whom came to work in the open fields of Izmir, located in the West of Turkey. Izmir was the main destination for Afro-Turks, former slaves of the Ottoman Empire who later became agricultural workers during the 19th century. Most citizens living in Turkey today remain unaware of this past and Izmir’s Afro-Turkish heritage.   

Polat has actively worked with the Africans' Culture and Solidarity Society in Izmir towards communicating the community’s personal stories to both Turkish and international audiences through archival research, pop-up photography studios, and exhibitions.

The selection of photographs presented for Galerie Mercatorplein was made by a team of young curators from West Amsterdam. Working together with Foam and Polat, Dilara Uysal, Yasemin Demirözcan, Jale Stravers, Tom Allsop, Shanna de Ruiter, Arzu Yıldız, Khadija Baarre, Mohamed Badaou and Mary Montesdeoca show us the result of their Dark Moon archive exploration. Access their stories through QR codes on site.