If Only You Knew
EXHIBITION
From the late 1960s, more and more women from Turkey came to the Netherlands to build new lives. What did those lives look like? We know very little about it. My book and exhibiton 'If Only You Knew' bring the stories of these women to light and give them a lasting place in Dutch history.
Bir bilsen… If only you knew… Many women begin their life stories this way when I visit them. Like Maviye, who fought for women's rights, and Selvet, who worked three shifts a day and barely saw her children as a result. Twenty-two of them are portrayed through interviews, photos from family albums, and new portraits of the women, who are now between sixty and eighty years old.
They talk about the pain of migration, homesickness, getting lost, and finding their way. Working, taking care of children, learning the language. Love and unhappy marriages. Being restricted as women and striving for emancipation. Their contribution to the Dutch economy as factory workers or cleaners, and their struggle for freedom and equal rights. Their stories are diverse, layered, and ambiguous, as every human experience is.
If Only You Knew is a multimedia project and photobook that was on display at the Nederlands Fotomuseum in Rotterdam. The photo book is available through Nai010 publishers.
Bir bilsen… If only you knew… Many women begin their life stories this way when I visit them. Like Maviye, who fought for women's rights, and Selvet, who worked three shifts a day and barely saw her children as a result. Twenty-two of them are portrayed through interviews, photos from family albums, and new portraits of the women, who are now between sixty and eighty years old.
They talk about the pain of migration, homesickness, getting lost, and finding their way. Working, taking care of children, learning the language. Love and unhappy marriages. Being restricted as women and striving for emancipation. Their contribution to the Dutch economy as factory workers or cleaners, and their struggle for freedom and equal rights. Their stories are diverse, layered, and ambiguous, as every human experience is.
If Only You Knew is a multimedia project and photobook that was on display at the Nederlands Fotomuseum in Rotterdam. The photo book is available through Nai010 publishers.
Credits:
Photography: Çiğdem Yüksel, Bertien van Manen
Initiative, research and interviews: Çiğdem Yüksel
Curators: Iris Bergman (Bertien van Manen), Frederiek Biemans (Prospektor), Frits Gierstberg (NFM)
Creative producer: Eefje Blankevoort (Prospektor)
Head of Presentation and Public Outreach: Grace Wong-Si-Kwie
Project management: Maaike de Kleijn (K&H), Dorothée Raemaekers (NFM), Laura Verduijn (Prospektor), Mariël Vermue (NFM)
Spatial and graphic design: Mayra Slagboom, Kummer & Herrman
Lithography: Marc Gijzen
Scans: Eelco Loode (NFM)
Printing and framing: Zwaan Fotografie & Presentatie, Fotovaklaboratorium 'De Verbeelding', SWOON Sign & Visual, Schunck (loan)
Lettering: SWOON Sign & Visual
Texts: Hizir Cengiz, Mila Lemmens, (Stichting BMP), Meral Polat
Text editing: Lara Aerts, Frederiek Biemans, Frits Gierstberg, Çiğdem Yüksel
Translation
Turkish: Aslı Güneş, Hanneke van der Heijden
English: Roxy Merrell, Janey Tucker
Assistance in research & photography: Afsaneh Ghafarian Rabe’I, Simaa al-Saig, Seleme Aydin, Zehra Göktas, Ece Mesge, Dimitri Valentijn
Research internship Universiteit Utrecht: Joost Urselmann
Video installation:
Concept and editing: Eefje Blankevoort, Thomas Vroege, Çiğdem Yüksel
Camera: Ton Peters, Emo Weemhoff, Çiğdem Yüksel
Sound design: Burak Öztaş
Colour grading: Thomas Vroege
Equipment: Mr. Beam
Tufted furniture:
Furniture design: Noor Bouterse (Van Noor Upholstery), Michael Klinkenberg (Mr. Soundmount), Çiğdem Yüksel
Tufting: Textiel Museum
Tufted cushions and carpets:
Tufting: Çiğdem Yüksel
Upholstery: Noor Bouterse (Van Noor Upholstery)
Video portraits:
Interviews: Çiğdem Yüksel
Camera: Thomas Roebers
Editing: Eefje Blankevoort
Video Çiğdem Yüksel about Bertien van Manen:
Direction, camera and sound: Rosa Ruth Boesten, From the documentary Droombeeld (Prospektor / NTR, 2024)
Exhibition installation: René Duinkerken, Rop de Graaf, Pim van Halem, Sigmund de Jong, Tryggvi Kristinsson, Marcel Langenberg, Jerrel Manué l, Jos van der Meulen, Jan Neggers
Upholstery: Crea Theater Textiel, KRACHTvrouwen
Lighting: Peter Romkema Lichtontwerp
Publicity & Press: Ditte Ooms (NFM), Natasja Wielandt (Collaburo)
With special thanks to the 22 women, their daughters, granddaughters and families who shared their stories and family pictures:
İclal Sürmeli, Hatun Kaş, Fadime Kahvecioğlu Balkan, Zehra Özgül, Feride Toper, Necibe Akbulut, Fatma Bulaz, Selvet Şükür, Esma Turgut Özçelik, Meryem Karaçadır Yıldırım, Necla Özsoy, Meneyşe Akpınar, Sevgi Akpınar, Fatma Akın, Yeter Akın, Feride Köycü, Güllü Çetin, Birgül Gültekin Özşahin, Maviye Karaman, Hadiye Kesmer, Nazife Kaya, Şerife Polat, Şefika Öder Gider, Solmaz Göktas, Zehra Göktas, Döndü Öcal, Şebnem Yozgat
Photography: Çiğdem Yüksel, Bertien van Manen
Initiative, research and interviews: Çiğdem Yüksel
Curators: Iris Bergman (Bertien van Manen), Frederiek Biemans (Prospektor), Frits Gierstberg (NFM)
Creative producer: Eefje Blankevoort (Prospektor)
Head of Presentation and Public Outreach: Grace Wong-Si-Kwie
Project management: Maaike de Kleijn (K&H), Dorothée Raemaekers (NFM), Laura Verduijn (Prospektor), Mariël Vermue (NFM)
Spatial and graphic design: Mayra Slagboom, Kummer & Herrman
Lithography: Marc Gijzen
Scans: Eelco Loode (NFM)
Printing and framing: Zwaan Fotografie & Presentatie, Fotovaklaboratorium 'De Verbeelding', SWOON Sign & Visual, Schunck (loan)
Lettering: SWOON Sign & Visual
Texts: Hizir Cengiz, Mila Lemmens, (Stichting BMP), Meral Polat
Text editing: Lara Aerts, Frederiek Biemans, Frits Gierstberg, Çiğdem Yüksel
Translation
Turkish: Aslı Güneş, Hanneke van der Heijden
English: Roxy Merrell, Janey Tucker
Assistance in research & photography: Afsaneh Ghafarian Rabe’I, Simaa al-Saig, Seleme Aydin, Zehra Göktas, Ece Mesge, Dimitri Valentijn
Research internship Universiteit Utrecht: Joost Urselmann
Video installation:
Concept and editing: Eefje Blankevoort, Thomas Vroege, Çiğdem Yüksel
Camera: Ton Peters, Emo Weemhoff, Çiğdem Yüksel
Sound design: Burak Öztaş
Colour grading: Thomas Vroege
Equipment: Mr. Beam
Tufted furniture:
Furniture design: Noor Bouterse (Van Noor Upholstery), Michael Klinkenberg (Mr. Soundmount), Çiğdem Yüksel
Tufting: Textiel Museum
Tufted cushions and carpets:
Tufting: Çiğdem Yüksel
Upholstery: Noor Bouterse (Van Noor Upholstery)
Video portraits:
Interviews: Çiğdem Yüksel
Camera: Thomas Roebers
Editing: Eefje Blankevoort
Video Çiğdem Yüksel about Bertien van Manen:
Direction, camera and sound: Rosa Ruth Boesten, From the documentary Droombeeld (Prospektor / NTR, 2024)
Exhibition installation: René Duinkerken, Rop de Graaf, Pim van Halem, Sigmund de Jong, Tryggvi Kristinsson, Marcel Langenberg, Jerrel Manué l, Jos van der Meulen, Jan Neggers
Upholstery: Crea Theater Textiel, KRACHTvrouwen
Lighting: Peter Romkema Lichtontwerp
Publicity & Press: Ditte Ooms (NFM), Natasja Wielandt (Collaburo)
With special thanks to the 22 women, their daughters, granddaughters and families who shared their stories and family pictures:
İclal Sürmeli, Hatun Kaş, Fadime Kahvecioğlu Balkan, Zehra Özgül, Feride Toper, Necibe Akbulut, Fatma Bulaz, Selvet Şükür, Esma Turgut Özçelik, Meryem Karaçadır Yıldırım, Necla Özsoy, Meneyşe Akpınar, Sevgi Akpınar, Fatma Akın, Yeter Akın, Feride Köycü, Güllü Çetin, Birgül Gültekin Özşahin, Maviye Karaman, Hadiye Kesmer, Nazife Kaya, Şerife Polat, Şefika Öder Gider, Solmaz Göktas, Zehra Göktas, Döndü Öcal, Şebnem Yozgat
If Only You Knew
EXHIBITIONFrom the late 1960s, more and more women from Turkey came to the Netherlands to build new lives. What did those lives look like? We know very little about it. My book and exhibiton 'If Only You Knew' bring the stories of these women to light and give them a lasting place in Dutch history.
Bir bilsen… If only you knew… Many women begin their life stories this way when I visit them. Like Maviye, who fought for women's rights, and Selvet, who worked three shifts a day and barely saw her children as a result. Twenty-two of them are portrayed through interviews, photos from family albums, and new portraits of the women, who are now between sixty and eighty years old.
They talk about the pain of migration, homesickness, getting lost, and finding their way. Working, taking care of children, learning the language. Love and unhappy marriages. Being restricted as women and striving for emancipation. Their contribution to the Dutch economy as factory workers or cleaners, and their struggle for freedom and equal rights. Their stories are diverse, layered, and ambiguous, as every human experience is.
If Only You Knew is a multimedia project and photobook that was on display at the Nederlands Fotomuseum in Rotterdam until may 2025. The photo book is available through Nai010 publishers.
Bir bilsen… If only you knew… Many women begin their life stories this way when I visit them. Like Maviye, who fought for women's rights, and Selvet, who worked three shifts a day and barely saw her children as a result. Twenty-two of them are portrayed through interviews, photos from family albums, and new portraits of the women, who are now between sixty and eighty years old.
They talk about the pain of migration, homesickness, getting lost, and finding their way. Working, taking care of children, learning the language. Love and unhappy marriages. Being restricted as women and striving for emancipation. Their contribution to the Dutch economy as factory workers or cleaners, and their struggle for freedom and equal rights. Their stories are diverse, layered, and ambiguous, as every human experience is.
If Only You Knew is a multimedia project and photobook that was on display at the Nederlands Fotomuseum in Rotterdam until may 2025. The photo book is available through Nai010 publishers.
Credits:
Photography: Çiğdem Yüksel, Bertien van Manen
Initiative, research and interviews: Çiğdem Yüksel
Curators: Iris Bergman (Bertien van Manen), Frederiek Biemans (Prospektor), Frits Gierstberg (NFM)
Creative producer: Eefje Blankevoort (Prospektor)
Head of Presentation and Public Outreach: Grace Wong-Si-Kwie
Project management: Maaike de Kleijn (K&H), Dorothée Raemaekers (NFM), Laura Verduijn (Prospektor), Mariël Vermue (NFM)
Spatial and graphic design: Mayra Slagboom, Kummer & Herrman
Lithography: Marc Gijzen
Scans: Eelco Loode (NFM)
Printing and framing: Zwaan Fotografie & Presentatie, Fotovaklaboratorium 'De Verbeelding', SWOON Sign & Visual, Schunck (loan)
Lettering: SWOON Sign & Visual
Texts: Hizir Cengiz, Mila Lemmens, (Stichting BMP), Meral Polat
Text editing: Lara Aerts, Frederiek Biemans, Frits Gierstberg, Çiğdem Yüksel
Translation
Turkish: Aslı Güneş, Hanneke van der Heijden
English: Roxy Merrell, Janey Tucker
Assistance in research & photography: Afsaneh Ghafarian Rabe’I, Simaa al-Saig, Seleme Aydin, Zehra Göktas, Ece Mesge, Dimitri Valentijn
Research internship Universiteit Utrecht: Joost Urselmann
Video installation:
Concept and editing: Eefje Blankevoort, Thomas Vroege, Çiğdem Yüksel
Camera: Ton Peters, Emo Weemhoff, Çiğdem Yüksel
Sound design: Burak Öztaş
Colour grading: Thomas Vroege
Equipment: Mr. Beam
Tufted furniture:
Furniture design: Noor Bouterse (Van Noor Upholstery), Michael Klinkenberg (Mr. Soundmount), Çiğdem Yüksel
Tufting: Textiel Museum
Tufted cushions and carpets:
Tufting: Çiğdem Yüksel
Upholstery: Noor Bouterse (Van Noor Upholstery)
Video portraits:
Interviews: Çiğdem Yüksel
Camera: Thomas Roebers
Editing: Eefje Blankevoort
Video Çiğdem Yüksel about Bertien van Manen:
Direction, camera and sound: Rosa Ruth Boesten, From the documentary Droombeeld (Prospektor / NTR, 2024)
Exhibition installation: René Duinkerken, Rop de Graaf, Pim van Halem, Sigmund de Jong, Tryggvi Kristinsson, Marcel Langenberg, Jerrel Manué l, Jos van der Meulen, Jan Neggers
Upholstery: Crea Theater Textiel, KRACHTvrouwen
Lighting: Peter Romkema Lichtontwerp
Publicity & Press: Ditte Ooms (NFM), Natasja Wielandt (Collaburo)
With special thanks to the 22 women, their daughters, granddaughters and families who shared their stories and family pictures:
İclal Sürmeli, Hatun Kaş, Fadime Kahvecioğlu Balkan, Zehra Özgül, Feride Toper, Necibe Akbulut, Fatma Bulaz, Selvet Şükür, Esma Turgut Özçelik, Meryem Karaçadır Yıldırım, Necla Özsoy, Meneyşe Akpınar, Sevgi Akpınar, Fatma Akın, Yeter Akın, Feride Köycü, Güllü Çetin, Birgül Gültekin Özşahin, Maviye Karaman, Hadiye Kesmer, Nazife Kaya, Şerife Polat, Şefika Öder Gider, Solmaz Göktas, Zehra Göktas, Döndü Öcal, Şebnem Yozgat