Hosted by Bornova Municipality, the Labor Novels Exhibition held at Uğur Mumcu Culture and Arts Center brought together the heroes of novels who give voice to the working class and the authors who wrote them. Curated by researcher and writer Mazlum Vesek, the exhibition presented more than 50 works to readers, spanning from 1927 to the present day, focusing on labor, sweat, and class struggle in Turkish literature.

The Voice of the Worker Became a Novel
The exhibition featured stories of workers, villagers, migrants, and unionists from a wide range of authors including Orhan Kemal, Yaşar Kemal, Vedat Türkali, Samim Kocagöz, Reşat Enis, and Mahmut Yesari. Visitors encountered a panorama of Turkey through characters who seemed to step out of the pages—such as Bosnian Girl Cemile, Slum-Dweller İbo, Little Memet, and Director Gündüz Abi—silent witnesses of labor history brought back to life.

Mazlum Vesek: “These novels are the traces of that flood”
Curator Mazlum Vesek stated, “How lucky we are to have Orhan Kemal, who wrote solely about the working class from his first to his last novel. We have Vedat Türkali, who spoke of cinema workers, and Yaşar Kemal, who told stories of villagers descending from the mountains to the Çukurova plains in search of work. While preparing this exhibition, I once again heard the voices of the worker heroes in our literature. In this exhibition, you will hear the voices of Bosnian Girl Cemile, Kurdish Zeynel, Little Memet, Slum-Dweller İbo, Expatriate Yücel, and many others. The working class has found its place in the world as a powerful flood. These novels are the flood itself, and the traces it left behind.”

Bornova Opens the Door to Labor in Literature
Bornova Mayor Ömer Eşki emphasized that such events are important for supporting cultural production and keeping the social memory alive. Mayor Eşki stated, “Labor is one of the most genuine realities of these lands. This exhibition shows how labor comes to life in novels. I thank everyone who contributed.”