By Heidi Trautmann

Dressed for the occasion in black and white the 50 members of FODER participating in the exhibition - altogether there are more than 70 members - swarmed about the Atatürk Cultural Centre on the evening of the opening on June 23with the Chairman Mehmet Gökyiğit calling them all together for a group photo  before the masses arrived. The female members have shown unhindered creativity in the choice of their outfit. As I have learnt FODER has a strict programme, on Thursdays they meet and discuss their work, listen to lectures given by guest photographers and on Sundays they tour the island to discover and document the beauty of their home country.

FODER was founded in 1992, so that makes 23 years in the service of photography, promoting not only photography but also the beauty, culture and people of Cyprus.

Our new president Mustafa Akıncı came to see the exhibition with his wife and I remember that he was a great promoter of photography during his time as Mayor of Nicosia, organising competitions.

Black and White, a very demanding project, and among the 150 photos by 50 photographers  I found some very good works. Faces always offer a good landscape and so are village scenes offering welcome targets. Architecture photography usually is neglected in many photographic projects but would be excellently suited for black and white, there could have been more. One could see that the FODER members have really enjoyed their task of grasping moments of Cyprus life and nature, often very playful. And, of course, one of the oldest photographers, Mehmet Şik, was memorized in a series of photos shot by Rifat Şik, and Mehmet, with whom I have led an interview three years ago in his old photoshop, was proud to pose with any guest that came his way; he is one of those legends...

Among the FODER members – besides the chairman Mehmet Gökyiğit - are some well known and successsful photographers with international awards, I am attaching a list of the exhibiting photographers, but will not comment further on the exponats, which is difficult to do in a group exhibition; it is the joy of participating.

Foreign residents cannot become a member of a Cyprus Turkish association but they are most welcome to join their activities. If you are interested to learn more please contact Mehmet Gökyiğit under 0542 852 0042 or visit their website www.kktcfoder.com.