Photographer Yener Torun has an eye for color. While many consider the urban landscape a drab environment, Torun thinks differently. The Turkish photographer, who studied architecture, spends his time wandering the streets of Istanbul to find unique examples of rainbow-hued buildings and prove that urban living can be colorful.
Torun creates his compositions with surgical precision. Each angle is exact and the results are so surreal that they seem plucked from a film. Given the graphic quality of his work, it should come as no surprise that Torun had an interest in design long before he picked up a camera. By merging all of his interests, he's seen his work progress and his Instagram following explode—he now has nearly 200,000 followers watching his every move.
Now, Torun is stretching himself and moving beyond Istanbul to explore some of Turkey's other cities. Ankara, Izmir, and Antalya are just some of the other urban settings where Torun has been able to find technicolor architecture. By sharing his work online, he is transforming expectations of Turkey. Focusing on colorful contemporary architecture rather than Turkey's historical monuments, Torun is providing an often unseen vision of the country.
“It's possible to find something inspiring in almost every corner of the city,” Torun tells My Modern Met. “You won't be discovering something pretty every time, but you'll find something original nonetheless. And even if some of the discoveries are some sort of atrocities, it's a satisfying feeling to find the best angles to transform them into works of art.”
“I think my work offers an alternative vision of Istanbul—or even Turkey—and helps people to form a more profound perception of it. What I show in my photographs are not very common things and I'm aware that my approach is somewhat idiosyncratic, but these photographs have the shock value to make people realize that there's a lot more than they know about this city and its dynamics.”
For Torun, each photograph is also a representation of himself, making his work extremely personal. He hopes that through his work, he inspires other creators to take risks and experiment with new projects. As his success shows, you never know what you might find.
Yener Torun is known for his spectacular architectural photos of colorful buildings in Istanbul.
Now he's begun traveling around Turkey to discover rainbow-colored buildings in different cities across the country.
Through his work, he proves that the urban landscape doesn't have to be drab.
He's also showing a whole new side to Turkish cities beyond the historical monuments.
