Istanbul is currently hosting the second international festival of photography of Besiktas, which is the largest photo festival ever organized in the city and is known as “FotoIstanbul”. As posted on the official website of the council of Besiktas District (Besiktas.bel.tr), the festival has brought together nearly 60 photographers from the USA, Asia, Europe and Turkey, writes ermenihaber.am.

The festival was launched on October 9 and will end on November 8 and is organized on the streets and at the squares of the city, as well as the orphanage and cultural center of Ortakyo.

According to the source, the 2^nd FotoIstanbul Festival includes 48 exhibitions, 15 roundtable discussions, 80 photo exhibitions and several other cultural events.

The title of this year’s festival is “Other Lives”. One of the exhibitions will be held at the street adjacent to Bahcheshehir University of Besiktas in special trailers.

According to columnist for the Hurriyet, Dogan Hizlan, the tremendous wooden picture of famous Istanbul-Armenian photographer Ara Guler, which is several meters high, is placed near the entrance to the street where there are photos portraying the panoramas of Istanbul and showcased with the title “Lost Istanbul”.

According to the official website of Besiktas, Ara Guler has a special place in this year’s “Respect to the Masters” initiative. Besides the fact that viewers will see the never-before-seen photos at the comprehensive exhibition, there will also be a special meeting/discussion devoted to Guler’s photography.

In addition, there will be photos by Sinan Kilic, Serkan Colak, Sitke Kiosemen and Joseph Koudelka portraying wars, their impact and consequences, the destruction that they have caused and similar topics. Women’s rights and their role in society are also reflected during this exhibition in Besiktas.

Diana Markosyan’s photo of an old Armenian man, which is the symbol of her photos devoted to the Armenian nation, will also be showcased at the exhibition.

Let us mention that the 2^nd FotoIstanbul Festival has brought together about 20 foreign prominent photographers, including Joseph Koudelka, Anders Petersen, Atta Kim and Stanley Green.