Bitlis, from the series Fault Lines/Turkey/East/West

Focusing on scenes of everyday life, Georgiou’s 'Fault Lines/Turkey/East/West' series documents social change in Turkey as rural populations migrate in massive numbers to urban areas. In this photograph, Georgiou has captured a detailed view of daily life in one of the new housing estates in the city of Bitlis in south-eastern Turkey, a region that has a harsh climate and where industry is limited, the local economy being built mainly on agricultural products.

Georgiou spent two years travelling through Turkey and photographing the country’s rapid urbanisation. He has said, "I was surprised at how quickly change was taking place: landscapes, towns and cities reshaped, an extensive road network under construction, town centres “beautified” and large apartment blocks springing up at a rapid rate around every town and city. Almost always, the architecture and infrastructure follow the same blueprint. Cities are becoming carbon copies of each other."1

1. 'Fault Lines: Turkey East to West' by George Georgiou, 'Lens Culture', Amsterdam, 2010, https://www.lensculture.com/articles/george-georgiou-fault-lines-turkey-east-to-west, accessed 1/3/2021