The exhibition “The Birth of a Friendship: Korea 70 Years Ago Through the Lens of a Turkish Photographer”, featuring photographs by İzzet Keribar, opened in Seoul with the participation of the First Lady of the Republic of Türkiye, Emine Erdoğan and the First Lady of the Republic of Korea, Kim Hea Kyung.
Organised by the Directorate of Communications at the War Memorial of Korea, the exhibition features photographs Keribar took in South Korea, where he arrived in 1956 to perform his military service.
Speaking at the event, First Lady Kim Hea Kyung said she still recalled with great pleasure the warmth and hospitality First Lady Emine Erdoğan extended to her in Ankara last year, adding that she was delighted to welcome her to Seoul and continue their cherished bond of friendship.
Recalling that photographer İzzet Keribar had begun photographing the Korean people in 1956, when he was just 20 years old and with a camera in his hands, Kim Hea Kyung said:
“I extend my deepest gratitude to this distinguished artist for capturing these images of our precious history and preserving them with such great care for 70 years. Among these invaluable photographs, one in particular holds a special place in my heart. It shows Turkish soldiers reaching out of a train window towards a young Korean boy stretching out his tiny hand to meet theirs. We do not know whether those hands ever touched. Yet the excitement and joy they felt towards one another have transcended the many years that have passed and reached us today.”
“The sacrifices and service of Korean War veterans remain etched in memory”
Referring to Keribar’s photographs of “little girls joyfully skipping rope” and “young boys sitting around a table with their hands clasped in prayer”, Kim Hea Kyung said: “When those children grew up, they never forgot the friends who had stood by them in their darkest hours. They kept vividly alive the memory of the noble sacrifices and extraordinary service of Türkiye’s Korean War veterans, who had rushed without hesitation to the aid of a distant country whose very name was unfamiliar to them, in the cause of its peace.”
Recalling the earthquakes centred in Kahramanmaraş on 6 February 2023, Kim Hea Kyung said:
“When the devastating earthquake struck Türkiye, our people wholeheartedly shared the suffering of the Turkish people and rushed to their aid without delay. This was because the gratitude we express through the words ‘brotherhood forged in blood’ has been forever engraved in our hearts and minds. I extend my thanks to everyone who contributed to the preparation of this meaningful exhibition, and I hope that the moments we share here today will take their place among the treasured memories of friendship between our two countries.”
“I could never have imagined that these photographs would become an exhibition”
Photographer İzzet Keribar, for his part, said that he was experiencing one of the most meaningful and emotional days of his life.“Exactly 70 years ago, in 1956, when I was just 20 years old, I arrived in the Republic of Korea as a young reserve officer serving with the Turkish Army’s 7th Brigade. My duty was to serve as an interpreter. I could never have imagined that the photographs I took in those days would, 70 years later, become an exhibition here, in the very land where they were taken,” he said.
Explaining that the war had ended by the time he arrived in Korea, but its wounds had yet to heal, Keribar continued:
“Devastated cities, people struggling to survive under difficult conditions and the painful memories of war were evident everywhere. Throughout the Korean War, Turkish soldiers displayed immense courage, sacrifice and heroism, fighting thousands of kilometres from home for the freedom and independence of a friendly nation. Today, I commemorate with profound respect and gratitude our heroic martyrs who lost their lives in this cause. I also remember with great admiration the South Korean soldiers who fought with extraordinary courage and determination to defend their homeland, as well as the Korean people, who managed to persevere despite all the suffering brought by the war. The struggle in which Turkish and Korean soldiers fought shoulder to shoulder forged not merely military solidarity between our two nations, but an unbreakable bond of brotherhood that would endure for generations.”
Keribar explained that the Korean War had ended in 1953 and that he had arrived in Korea in 1956. During his year of service with the Turkish Brigade, he had the opportunity to photograph not only military life but also the daily lives of the Korean people, their villages, children in the streets and their efforts to rebuild their lives.
“Long live Türkiye–Korea friendship”
Keribar said that the warmth of the Korean people and the affection and respect they had shown towards Turkish soldiers had left an indelible impression on his memory. “The Republic of Korea I see before me today has risen from the poverty and devastation of those years to become one of the most developed and respected countries in the world. This extraordinary achievement is the finest testament to the Korean people's hard work, perseverance and love for their homeland,” he said.
Noting that 70 years had passed, that he had grown older and that both Korea and the world had changed, Keribar said, “Yet two things remain unchanged: the brotherhood between the Turkish and Korean peoples, and the memories kept alive through photographs. The photographs exhibited here today are not merely images from the past. They are historical records bearing witness to the shared history of two friendly nations, their love for humanity and the value of peace.”
Keribar thanked the Presidency’s Directorate of Communications for making the exhibition possible, along with his Korean friends and all the institutions and organisations that had contributed to its organisation. He also commemorated with respect all the heroes who had lost their lives on Korean soil.
Expressing his wish for the friendship and brotherhood between the two countries to endure forever, Keribar concluded, “Long live Türkiye–Korea friendship.”
