In Memoriam & Condolences
It is with deep sorrow that we have learned of the passing of Halil Tuncer, Türkiye's doyen tourism photojournalist, who became synonymous with his "Türkiye in Photographs" exhibitions and served as our country's voluntary tourism ambassador.
He will be laid to rest on Friday, 17 September 2021, in the Burhaniye district of his hometown of Balıkesir.
Halil Tuncer, who devoted his entire life to tourism photography and photojournalism, introduced Türkiye's historical and touristic treasures to the world through the photographs he took over a span of nearly fifty years. Traveling to every corner of Türkiye, he held exhibitions in many countries from Asia to Europe and from Africa to the Americas with the photographs he captured, and brought Türkiye's most original frames to the walls of a great many people, from statesmen to professors and from politicians to renowned business figures. A photograph he took at Mount Nemrut was selected as runner-up among thousands of photographs from 69 countries at the poster competition organized by the World Tourism Organization in Denmark in 1993. This poster won Türkiye the second prize, yet no one called to inform him of the situation. Tuncer only learned of what had happened by chance, fully six months after the competition, thanks to a news item that appeared in a magazine. He continued to bring his many beautiful photographs of Türkiye to his visitors and to promote the country's historical and touristic treasures.
Halil Tuncer's love of photography began many long years ago, in his childhood, in 1955 while he was in middle school. His first camera was a top-view 6x9 Kodak that he bought in installments with his own pocket money. With his first camera, he began taking photographs of people at school to earn his pocket money. Between 1967 and 1969, while doing his military service in Gallipoli, he was assigned to run the photography studio. When he returned to Istanbul in 1969, he rented a house in Nişantaşı and continued to live with photographs, shaping his life around his photographic frames. His travels across Anatolia began in 1971 with a trip he made with the National Student Federation of Türkiye.
Today, Halil Tuncer is the first tourism photographer that comes to mind when Mount Nemrut is mentioned. In 1971, he traveled across Anatolia for 30 days with the National Student Federation of Türkiye, taking photographs. His first Nemrut photograph dates from this trip as well. At the time, he also shot an 8 mm film with an old Russian camera. This film he recorded was taken to France by the promotion counselor's office. Foreigners who watched the film, captivated by Türkiye, began organizing holiday trips there. The following year, a very famous guide brought groups of Swedish tourists to Istanbul. Tuncer gave two photographs of Ephesus as a gift to a philosophy professor in the tourist group. Reciprocating this gesture, the professor later wrote him a letter asking "what do you want to do?" When Tuncer said he wanted to hold a Türkiye exhibition, the professor sent him a plane ticket and invited him to Sweden. Thus, the first of Halil Tuncer's 'Türkiye in Photographs' exhibitions held abroad took place in Sweden.
Halil Tuncer, a member of the World Federation of Travel Journalists and Writers (FIJET), applied for a visa in 1993 to attend the FIJET congress to be held in the USA. The consulate asked him for a tax certificate, a house deed and a bank book for the visa. But he had none of these. Taking a few of his photographs with him, he joined the queue at the US consulate to apply for a visa. When it was his turn, the officer asked him for his documents. At that moment, by coincidence, he saw his own photograph on a Türkiye poster hanging behind the officer. Pointing to the photograph behind him, Tuncer told the consulate officer, "There is my tax certificate." The situation was then reported to the consul, who invited him into his office and offered him a coffee. He asked for his passport and, remarking that artists hold a special place, granted him a lifetime US visa.
In an interview conducted with him a short while ago, Halil Tuncer, who expressed that his love of photography came before everything else, had said: "When I stay in Istanbul for two months, I feel as if I am rotting; I absolutely have to set off on some exploration. Once I find travel money and a place to stay, the rest is no problem. I am constantly traveling, which is why I chose photography over marriage." His two attempts at marriage in his life also ended in separation; in his first attempt at marriage in 1990, he became engaged to the daughter of a well-to-do family in Yeniköy, but when the girl's family intervened, saying "he travels too much," the engagement was broken off. Two years later, he and another person he had met decided to arrange a formal betrothal between the families, but the next day, accepting an exhibition invitation that came his way, he left the country in a great hurry, and on the plane he realized he had forgotten about the "betrothal." When the prospective bride gave up, his second attempt at marriage also ended in failure.
It was a great pleasure to see Türkiye and our people through the lens of Halil Tuncer, who existed through his spirit. Halil Tuncer, the master name of the art of photography and doyen photojournalist who documented history with photographs that perfectly filled every frame of the blank film that life gave us, will always be remembered with goodwill for the many exemplary works he left behind and for his contributions to our sector and our Association.
We pray for God's mercy upon the late Halil Tuncer and extend our condolences and wishes for patience to his family above all, as well as to all his loved ones, friends and relatives in our community. May the great master rest in paradise.
TÜROB (The Association of Turkish Hoteliers) Board of Directors