Photobook Talk: Cengiz Yar + Victor J. Blue

Photographer and editor Cengiz Yar presents his first monograph This Alabaster Grave in conversation with photojournalist Victor J. Blue.

Yar's photobook explores the overwhelming destruction and pain faced by the Iraqi city of Mosul, within the context of its history and unique, now largely ruined, architecture. It questions the cost of the fight against ISIS and the global war on terror with a focus on the lives and city that bore the brunt of its destructive force. The photographs were made between 2015 and 2023.

The book includes a foreword from Azmat Khan, an essay by Campbell MacDiarmid, and a pullout map. It is designed by Jason Koxvold of Gnomic Book and written in both English and Arabic. Learn about the photobook here.

Cengiz Yar (@cengizya) is a documentary photographer and editor based in El Paso, Texas. He has worked in visual journalism for over a decade, from reporting in the field to building groundbreaking online packages. He is the inaugural recipient of the James Foley Award for Conflict Reporting, a Pulitzer Prize finalist, and a Dart Center Ochberg Fellow in Journalism and Trauma. 

Victor J. Blue (@victorblue) is a photojournalist whose work is most often concerned with the legacy of armed conflict, human rights and the protection of civilian populations, and unequal outcomes resulting from policy and politics. His work from around the world has appeared in The New York Times, The New Yorker, Harper’s Magazine, New York Times Magazine, Bloomberg Businessweek and leading publications from around the world.

The Bronx Documentary Center’s programming is made possible by the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs and the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature. Foundation support is provided by the Clif Family Foundation, Jean and Louis Dreyfus Foundation, H.T. Ewald Foundation, Fleishman Charitable Trust, Hillman Family Foundation, Chris Hondros Fund, Four Friends Foundation, Ford Foundation, Jerome Foundation, Joy of Giving Something, Leonian Foundation, Jonathan Logan Family Foundation, Lawrence Foundation, Pierre and Tania Matisse Foundation, Peck Foundation, Pinkerton Foundation, Samuels Foundation, Scherman Foundation, Van Agtmael Fund, and Hyde and Watson Foundation. BDC corporate partners include Adobe, BronxCare Health System, Fujifilm, and Montefiore Health System. With special thanks to our community of donors who elevate all of our work.

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