Kemal’s Travels Through Small Museums

The Museum of Innocence

This flow traces Kemal’s museum visits as a practical and emotional education in how to preserve a life through ordinary objects.

increasing

Bearing strength in each event

decreasing

Paris as a Beginning Paris as a Beginning from "The Museum of Innocence". Paris as a Beginning A journey without a clear explanation Kemal returns to Paris after Füsun’s death, initially unable to explain the purpose even to himself.

Paris as a Beginning from "The Museum of Innocence". Paris as a Beginning A journey without a clear explanation Kemal returns to Paris after Füsun’s death, initially unable to explain the purpose even to himself.

Paris as a Beginning A journey without a clear explanation Kemal returns to Paris after Füsun’s death, initially unable to explain the purpose even to himself. Quiet, overlooked museums give him relief from the reminders of Istanbul. Objects become legible Brushes, toys, letters, and rooms suggest that personal things can carry a life. He begins to imagine his own collection as more than private consolation.

A House Made Memorial A House Made Memorial from "The Museum of Innocence". A House Made Memorial A model in the past At the Musée Gustave Moreau, Kemal sees a home transformed into a memorial for an artist’s work and life.

A House Made Memorial from "The Museum of Innocence". A House Made Memorial A model in the past At the Musée Gustave Moreau, Kemal sees a home transformed into a memorial for an artist’s work and life.

A House Made Memorial A model in the past At the Musée Gustave Moreau, Kemal sees a home transformed into a memorial for an artist’s work and life. Its rooms provide a model for combining a collection with an inhabited space. A new purpose He imagines preserving Füsun’s objects in the place where her family lived. The idea gives his grief a concrete architectural direction.

A Worldwide Education A Worldwide Education from "The Museum of Innocence". A Worldwide Education Small collections matter Kemal visits museums in Europe, Asia, and the Americas, studying displays devoted to perfume, medicine…

A Worldwide Education from "The Museum of Innocence". A Worldwide Education Small collections matter Kemal visits museums in Europe, Asia, and the Americas, studying displays devoted to perfume, medicine…

A Worldwide Education Small collections matter Kemal visits museums in Europe, Asia, and the Americas, studying displays devoted to perfume, medicine, transport, photography, and everyday life. Each visit supplies a possible model or object. Private grief gains context The museums make his collection seem less eccentric and more historically meaningful. He begins to imagine a visitor who can recognize a personal story in ordinary artifacts.

The Collector’s Home The Collector’s Home from "The Museum of Innocence". The Collector’s Home Meeting other collectors Kemal meets Istanbul collectors whose homes are overflowing with objects they cannot bring themselves to discard.

The Collector’s Home from "The Museum of Innocence". The Collector’s Home Meeting other collectors Kemal meets Istanbul collectors whose homes are overflowing with objects they cannot bring themselves to discard.

The Collector’s Home Meeting other collectors Kemal meets Istanbul collectors whose homes are overflowing with objects they cannot bring themselves to discard. Their isolation and embarrassment mirror his own hidden behavior. A decision to display He decides that his collection should not end as an inaccessible hoard. A museum will preserve the objects and give their stories a public form.

The Museum Takes Shape The Museum Takes Shape from "The Museum of Innocence". The Museum Takes Shape Objects enter the building Kemal gathers material from the Merhamet Apartments, the Keskin home, flea markets, and other collectors.

The Museum Takes Shape from "The Museum of Innocence". The Museum Takes Shape Objects enter the building Kemal gathers material from the Merhamet Apartments, the Keskin home, flea markets, and other collectors.

The Museum Takes Shape Objects enter the building Kemal gathers material from the Merhamet Apartments, the Keskin home, flea markets, and other collectors. The Çukurcuma building becomes a carefully arranged site of memory. A life arranged for visitors His experience of museums teaches him how objects and rooms can shape a story. The collection becomes both a memorial to Füsun and a portrait of Istanbul.

After Füsun’s death

Late 1980s

1980s–1990s

During the 1990s

2000s