Prepared by Nobel Prize–winning author Orhan Pamuk as the catalogue for The Museum of Innocence, Şeylerin Masumiyeti (The Innocence of Objects) meets international readers in its English edition with the addition of six new display cases. The book offers a multilayered narrative extending from collecting practices to the memory of Istanbul.
Orhan Pamuk’s catalogue book Şeylerin Masumiyeti (The Innocence of Objects), prepared for the Museum of Innocence in Istanbul, meets international readers once again with six new display cases included in its English edition.
The museum, the culmination of a collecting practice spanning decades, reconstructs a lost love story through the everyday objects of Istanbul’s urban life.
As the official catalogue of the museum, Şeylerin Masumiyeti (The Innocence of Objects) deepens this narrative through the intertwined lenses of literature, visual culture, and personal memory.
On the Traces of Old Istanbul
In the book, Pamuk reflects on the true function of the museum, the psychology of the collector, and the traces of old Istanbul. Traditions, everyday habits, and urban memory find a powerful presence in both the texts and the images.
Extending from fleeting moments of daily life to jewel-like photographic essays, the visual selection transforms the book from a mere catalogue into a distinctive work of art and literature.
The six new display cases added to the English edition enrich the museum’s narrative and expand the dimensions of Pamuk’s personal archive, turning the book into a compelling literary and visual guide for those who wish to explore Istanbul and the memory constructed through objects.
