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Osman Bozkurt, Marks of Democracy / Portraits of the Voters, 2002

Chapter: Small Right Hand Down - Democracy and Freedom

Information

Turkish artist Osman Bozkurt studied photography and began his artistic career in the early 2000s. In 2002, he created what is arguably his best-known work to date, the photo series Marks of Democracy / Portraits of the Voters, which was included in the 2021 exhibition Power to the People at the Schirn Kunsthalle in Frankfurt.
Bozkurt presents close-ups of the fingers of anonymous individuals, still marked with ink as evidence of their participation in the election. Applying durable ink to a finger after casting a ballot is a method used to prevent multiple submissions and safeguard the integrity of the process. This practice is especially common in countries without electronic voter registries. The ink often contains silver nitrate, which reacts with the keratin in the skin to leave a mark that only fades after days or weeks as the skin naturally renews itself.

In 2002, this procedure was still widespread in Turkey, but it was abolished a few years later. At first glance, Bozkurt’s photographs seem to celebrate democracy and the act of participating in elections. Contrary to what the title suggests, the individuals’ faces are not visible; personal identity plays no role. The ink-stained fingers in the series reveal nothing about the choices made. Significantly, these marks come from the 2002 election, a moment that heralded the rise of authoritarian structures.


Audio

Note: The audio transcription is voiced by an AI.

Osman Bozkurt, Marks of Democracy / Portraits of the Voters, 2002
C-Print. Five works
© Osman Bozkurt
Sammlung Deutsche Bank

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