Turkish Wrestling
Lawrence Grecco's "Turkish Wrestling" appeals to me strongly as a wrestler, a psychotherapist and an amatuer photographer. Through beautiful pictures and descriptive text he makes a very foreign culture seem kindred. The univerals of sport, masculine struggle, comraderie and brotherhood leap from the page in moments and movements that seem at once very different from my experience as an American wrestler, and yet somehow very close to home. Through his talent as an artist he is able to bridge the cultural gap and connect me with the deeper meaning of what it means to be in a community of men who strive for perfection through the particular sport of wrestling. Through his keen photographic eyes, we are all winners as we experience the age old traditions of theTurkish Kirkpinar. I highly recommend this wonderful book. --AmazonLawrence Grecco's photographs provide a texture uncommon in the artform. There is a sensitivity here, a strange, weighty slowness. One gets the impression that you're not looking at a still picture at all, but a few moments blending into one another, less an instant than idea, a feeling. Grecco captures a complete world; he manages to make a several-hundred year-old, highly public tradition seem private, quiet and secluded. The wrestlers are all men, of course, but the pictures are often disturbingly intimate, delicate, and emotional. Perhaps what has really been captured is the athlete's love for their history and culture -- respect, essentially. The book's text offers a short history of the origins of the sport as well as a subtle and honest look into Grecco's personal experiences during the years spent documenting the event. No doubt, it is the same way that readers will view the photographs. --AmazonThis handsomely-produced coffee table book features an extraordinary array of photographs over a three year span, resulting in a stunning celebration of human strength and spirit. "Turkish Wrestling" expertly details the Kirkpinar experience from exuberant start to breathless finish. Grecco's camera enshrines the athletes with uncommon grace, from the turbulent struggle between combatants to the aftermath where victors strut with open pride and vanquished lie horizontal in near-collapse. Even though these are still photographs, one can virtually feel both the electricity of the moment with its mix of oil and sweat under the full glare of the hot Turkish sun. --AmazonLawrence Grecco's "Turkish Wrestling" appeals to me strongly as a wrestler, a psychotherapist and an amatuer photographer. Through beautiful pictures and descriptive text he makes a very foreign culture seem kindred. The univerals of sport, masculine struggle, comraderie and brotherhood leap from the page in moments and movements that seem at once very different from my experience as an American wrestler, and yet somehow very close to home. Through his talent as an artist he is able to bridge the cultural gap and connect me with the deeper meaning of what it means to be in a community of men who strive for perfection through the particular sport of wrestling. Through his keen photographic eyes, we are all winners as we experience the age old traditions of theTurkish Kirkpinar. I highly recommend this wonderful book. --AmazonThis handsomely-produced coffee table book features an extraordinary array of photographs over a three year span, resulting in a stunning celebration of human strength and spirit. "Turkish Wrestling" expertly details the Kirkpinar experience from exuberant start to breathless finish. Grecco's camera enshrines the athletes with uncommon grace, from the turbulent struggle between combatants to the aftermath where victors strut with open pride and vanquished lie horizontal in near-collapse. Even though these are still photographs, one can virtually feel both the electricity of the moment with its mix of oil and sweat under the full glare of the hot Turkish sun. --Amazon