It encourages children living in the area—many of whom are themselves refugees from Syria and Iraq—to experiment with the medium as both a form of play and a means of understanding the world around them.
In these images, produced by the project’s young participants, the city of Mardin and the vast Mesopotamian plain beyond become a backdrop to the miraculous dreams, games, and discoveries which play out within the space of the frame. In occasional moments, the war nearby is hinted at: a fighter plane enters the frame of an otherwise clear sky; a child peers out from inside a UNHCR box.
But rather than reiterating scenes of suffering and trauma, these images depict their environment afresh through the unmistakable, wonder-filled gaze of a child: a vision punctuated by surprise and play, in which friends and family are captured mid-flight, upside down, leaning out of windows, and whimsically disguised. Full of laughter and joy, I saw the air fly is a testament to the unfailing resilience of the imagination, the healing power of photography, and the enchanting perspective of childhood.
All proceeds from this publication will go to the Her Yerde Sanat-Sirkhane charity.
How did the project come about?
Her Yerde Sanat-Sirkhane was founded in 2012 in a region where it is difficult to be a child. Her Yerde Sanat-Sirkhane’s mission is to provide a safe, friendly, and embracing environment for children who are affected by conflicts. It replaces their damaged childhood with joy and enriches the children’s imagination using the magic of social circus pedagogy. Children have the opportunity to collaborate and form friendships with one another, beyond gender, social and cultural differences. In doing so, they manifest peace, harmony, open-mindedness, and cheerfulness in their local and global communities. Sirkhane carries out activities in Turkey and Iraq, serving children through Sirkhane centers located in Mardin province and to rural areas of Mardin province through mobile units.
There is also a book coming out. Where is it available? Can you tell us more about it?
We are excited to announce our new collaboration with MACK Books. I Saw the Air Fly is a book that explores how children see the world through their own eyes. Every photograph in the book was selected by the children themselves—not by me. It will be published by MACK Books and released on www.mackbooks.co.uk in September.
„i saw the air fly“ – What are you referring to?
We created this project in 2017, first we started the project in istasyon district it’s a very poor area never been reached by humanitarian NGO and also home of thousands of refugees from Syria and Iraq and local people, one day we went to istasyon district and we saw all the communities talking same languages but there was no any communication between them as we got an idea to use analog photography as language to let children express themselves with photography and bring this communities together also we use in our Curriculum subjects such as child rights, child labor, and marriage, Environment and ecology, bullying and gender to empower them.
A memory you want to share with us?
The children are deeply interested in analogue photography. For them, it is a way to express themselves. I remember the first time one of the children attending the workshop placed a sheet of photographic paper into the chemical tray. As the image slowly appeared, he started saying, „Bismillah.“ He thought it was magic. When we go outside to make photographs, they rely entirely on their imagination. The results are always surprising and brilliant.
And that makes children Parents Support them usually culturally they don’t allow to girls getting out of the house freely After seeing the results and how talented they Are they start to support them and they become a family photographer whenever father or brother or sister need a photo for school registration etc. they go the children who attend the workshop children.
Who is the project supported by?
Sirkhane DARKROOM is a nonprofit project run by the nonprofit organization Her Yerde Sanat. From time to time, we launch fundraising campaigns with the support of our friends and community to help us continue our work. We are always in need of analogue photography materials, especially black-and-white film and 35mm compact cameras. People who would like to support the project can also make a donation through our PayPal account.
What is planned for the future?
From our fundraising, we got a small caravan, and we turned it into a small mobile darkroom and started to go to the villages where there is limited access to education, art, and their rights.
Sirkhane DARKROOM – www.sirkhane.org/darkroom, www.instagram.com/sirkhanedarkroom/
