Blending objects

Featuring Cihan Öncü Words by Nastasia Khmelnitski

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The experience a viewer encounters with Cihan Öncü’s work is of joy, harmony between the subject and their environment, and contemplation about the story presented. His work, a burst of color, brings forward the midsummer dream element on the verge of a light spirit connected to the season and the realization of the close change.

With his recent project a.s.m.r, Cihan portrays subjects in his friend's hair salon getting their hair washed and prepped. The project is a research about the state of relaxation and reflection that the subject enters through displaying the change in their facial expression. This exploration through this work of building relationships with total strangers allows a step closer to their inner state, almost reading their minds, trying to reconstruct their story.

Cihan Öncü is a photographer from Turkey, currently working between Istanbul and NY. We decided to speak with Cihan about the a.s.m.r project and his approach to photographing intimate and silent moments.

We talk about his path to photography, which started from his uncle introducing Cihan to the subject. Later, Cihan worked four years as an assistant photographer and developed his skills in multicultural environments, shooting in Turkey and the US. “Blending objects that are ordinary in everyday life but interesting to me with the colors I coded for these objects and presenting them with my own simple aesthetic,” Cihan explains is his main passion in photography. 

‘My uncle, a photographer, introduced me to photography at a very young age. Later, during my university years, my interest increased.’

I Am

Hi Cihan, glad to have this conversation with you! What was the first thing that pulled you into the sphere of photography? How did it all start? 

Glad to have this conversation with you too! Actually, my uncle, a photographer, introduced me to photography at a very young age. Later, during my university years, my interest increased, and when I finished school, I decided to focus only on photography and move to Istanbul. After being a photographer assistant for about four years, I started to do projects and work on my own in 2016.

‘Between 2017-2019, I spent most of my time in NYC. I traveled to Istanbul for some commercial work. During this time, I had the chance to establish a solid photography circle in NYC.’

Between NY and Istanbul

Living and working in such a distant, one from the other, cities as New York and Istanbul, what is the most striking difference from the cultural perspective, and how do they differ in an approach to work? 

Between 2017-2019, I spent most of my time in NYC. I traveled to Istanbul for some commercial work. During this time, I had the chance to establish a solid photography circle in NYC. And I always tried to keep these relationships fresh. These days, I am mostly in Istanbul and Europe, but I also travel to NYC at regular intervals. Culturally, of course, those are very different countries and cities, but the common feature of both is that they are cosmopolitan and international. I know that the work I do is a good fit for this situation.

‘Convincing people has never been easy. I think that I provided the necessary sincerity because I went to the same salon over and over and saw the same people over and over.’

A.S.M.R

Such a beautiful idea and a surprising theme for your project A.S.M.R — for seven months photographing people at the comfort of their experience of washing heads in a hair salon. How did you manage to convince people to take their photographs and make them look authentic? 

Convincing people has never been easy. I think that I provided the necessary sincerity because I went to the same salon over and over and saw the same people over and over. In general, everyone had a short or long story. I would listen to them and make a guess about that person. Some were interesting stories, but most were candid conversations about women's youth.

‘Blending objects that are ordinary in everyday life but interesting to me with the colors I coded for these objects and presenting them with my own simple aesthetic is probably what excites me the most in my practice.’

Fashion Photography

In fashion projects and fashion still life images, you work on contrasting colors, which become one of the main recurring elements. The saturation is with aesthetics and with the beyond — the aspect that is evoked with colors  — the dynamics of the story yet to be revealed. What types of composition catch your interest, and what is important for you to have in the frame to create this feeling of an unfolding narrative? 

Blending objects that are ordinary in everyday life but interesting to me with the colors I coded for these objects and presenting them with my own simple aesthetic is probably what excites me the most in my practice.

Photographs 01

What is the main thread between the works you present in the limited edition of your prints on 22,5 x 30,5 cm? What might be the topic for the Photographs 02 edition?  

This is actually a work that I call my portfolio series. I want to create a new portfolio every time I develop myself and work on new projects. I preferred to prepare this presentation in a certain format. This portfolio book consists of 28 prints (22.5cm x 30.5cm). I want to have this size and number of prints in my next portfolio book.

‘This portfolio book consists of 28 prints (22.5cm x 30.5cm). I want to have this size and number of prints in my next portfolio book.’

Next Steps

What project are you working on or planning as the next one?

I am working on two projects. One is about food poisoning, and the other one is about teenage swimmers.