The collection, consisting of photographs of 44 ethnic and religious communities in Turkey, is part of a host of cultural events leading up to this year's Frankfurt Book Fair, where Turkey is the guest of honor.

There are about 20,000 photographs Durak took between 2000 and 2006 by visiting about 1,000 towns in Anatolia. Titled, "Ebru: Reflections on Cultural Diversity," the exhibition had been first put on display in New York in May 2007, then in Turkey and other countries. Actually, the exhibition is part of the Ebru Project, which aims to garner attention to Turkey's cultural legacy and diversity through books, music, exhibitions and panels. Under the project, the "Ebru Kitabı" (Ebru Book) was published by Metis Publications and a CD featuring 21 songs, released by Kalan Music, accompanies the book. The book contains 320 photographs and its introduction was written by John Berger while 24 authors including Sezen Aksu, Elif Şafak, Ara Güler, İshak Alaton, Nebahat Akkoç, Murat Belge, Tukuhi Tomasyan Zaman, Herkül Milas, and Ruşen Çakır made contributions to it.
Before the opening of the exhibition, Durak spoke to Today's Zaman about cultural diversity in Turkey. "In Turkey, we tend to use the word mosaic to signify cultural diversity. But mosaic cannot properly represent our country. In a mosaic, pieces are clear cut, and there were not interaction among pieces, and there are bound together with cement," he say, and adds: "Ebru -- paper marbling -- is the best word to describe Turkey. [In ebru] different colors do not distort each other, but form a harmony."

Durak was born in Gümüşhane in 1967, and was graduated from the Middle East Technical University (ODTÜ) in Ankara. Although he had good job, one day he decided to quit it for adventure. "I have worked for a company for about ten years. It was a desk job. I was not happy with continuously dealing with money or figures. I wanted to produce something and I was attracted to photography. My current financial status is worse than my previous job, but I am happier," he explained. At some time, Durak went to New York, where he worked at various jobs while he also studied photography. In time, he opened several exhibitions. In early 1990s, he visited various countries to take photos. He was greatly disappointed when his camera was stolen just before he returned home after taking about 2,000 thousand pictures in India, Pakistan and Nepal. He then went to the US and traveled back to Turkey to take photos on cultural diversity in Anatolia.

Durak is now living in İstanbul. "My photos are like my children," he says, and talks about the hardships he suffering while taking photos. He notes that after traveling to many countries, he decided to settle in Turkey. "Seen from outside, Turkey is a magnificent country. It has potentialities. I have lived abroad for about 11 years. I have been to India, Nepal, Iran, Pakistan, Syria, Egypt, Jordan, the US, Canada, Peru, the UK, Greece and many other countries, and now I have settled in İstanbul." Stressing the dynamism of Turkey, Durak maintains: "Turkey is … full of surprises. It has big diversities and richness. People are very warm." The photographer argues that Turkey's globalization cannot be reversed. "Our people should visit other countries and see the world. Then, they can see Turkey from a different angle," he says.

The 86-piece exhibition is scheduled to run until Nov. 4 in Frankfurt before it travels to Leipzig and then to Basel, Switzerland, from Nov. 11-27.

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