Ersin ALOK, was born in 1937 and was graduated from the Psychology Department of the Faculty of Literature and later the I.I.T.I. Academy of Journalism and Commerce.
He founded the Photography Institute of Mimar SINAN University. Having started his artistic life as a painter, Alok presented his first exhibition in 1953, at the Faculty of Linguistics, History and Geography in Ankara. His underwater and mountaineering exhibitions and approach to nature, became the meaning of his life.
Alok who started mountaineering in 1953 made 189 climbs at home. He commenced his underwater exhibitions in 1995. He photographed in various parts of the world, diving into deep seas. He is amongst the first Turkish Red Sea divers. He organized several conferences and exhibitions on the subject matter.
His exhibitions to the Amazons gave him the opportunity to study the integrity of wild life and the endangered animals, photographically. He performed the preliminary studies for the establishment of national parks in Turkey and established their photographic documents, in 1966.
He started his professional carreer in photography in 1967. He won the first prize in Fifth Biannual of Paris in the "Absurd" category. Other first prizes came from Rome, Brussels, Sofia, Warshov and Barkeley, USA.
The World Photographers Union awarded Alok with the right to represent the Asian Continent in Helsinki, in 1989 and organized the Panoramic Triangle Exhibition on Nature, including Alok and three more artists.
Achieving 204 personal exhibitions in total so far, Alok has also succeeded in organizing 41 personal international exhibitions.
He established a "sound archive" making use of his earlier sound recordings. He also founded the first "DiaBank" of Turkey, in 1967, consisting of nearly five million slides.
Alok published 24 books so far. The "Hellenistic Architecture in Asia-Minor" was published by the Academy Editions in 1992. Currently, he works on four new books. His latest book is the "Melting Pot of Civilizations", published in July,1998.
Alok also works on documentary films. Some of a total of 43 "35/16 mm" documentaries are: Zoma I. 1979, Zoma II. 1979, Ishakpasha Palace 1972, Rock Paintings 1973, The Birdmen of Turkey 1980, The Desert Wind filmed in Sahara 1981, The story of Iron 1998, The Wind of Time 1999.
In 1998, he founded the Video and Beta-Com studios to be utilized in the industrial and anthropological studies.
He discovered over 10,000 rock paintings in Eastern Anatolia. He studied the rock paintings in South Africa in Sevilla, in 1998. He gave conferences on the subject both at home and abroad and published two books.
One of these books covers the world's first psycho-analytical descriptions of these rock paintings. His book, called the "Anatolian Synagogues" is another one of these "first"s.
His book, called the "Melting Pot of Civilizations" is one of his most noteworthy studies from the point of view that it reflects the era through the photographic techniques and technological studies. Another one of his books, "Step-by-Step Alacahoyuk", another archive study, is one of the first of its kind.
Alok gave over 2,000 research conferences. To date, his prehistorical and anthropological studies covered the whole world, except New Zeland and the South Pole.
Alok believes that "sharing" is the essence of existentialism and claims that visualization is to be shared. The truth, in his opinion, is local. He states that "truth" in all echelons of the world, is valid for the locality it represents.
He also made researches on the "sharing of life and sexual behaviours" in the Himalayas and the Hindu and Budhist temples.
Alok also made considerable researches on industrial photography. He compiled brochures, posters and booklets, and organized fair displays.
He is well-known by his inventions in archeological and architectural photography techniques. He has inventions on subjects such as , control of colors and contrast on photographs, the strengthening of blue, etc.
In 1999, he created favorable conditions in his studio to develop new software, digitization of photographs, establishment of near-life color controls ready to be published in the virtual (cyber) environments.
He became the first person in Turkey, who took pictures in sketch form, with a 360-degree view, in 1986.
He currently studies on the photo-characteristics of digital photos. Alok continues his work in the "a. Photography & Film Studio".
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