Istanbul Library – It began as a hobby collecting books and manuscripts, but Gokhan Ozbek soon turned w into a massive collection. We spoke with him about the Istanbul library of which he is founder and owner.
How did your passion for books begin
As I see it, collecting is entirely the product of a person’s character. I come from a generation that has grown up in a technology-intensive digital world. I enjoy the benefits of technology in my personal as well as my business life.
At the same time there is an enormous store of knowledge, custom and culture from the past that has brought us to where we are today. And there is no doubt that books are the single entity that best preserves and transmits those values.
I enjoy collecting by nature, so I combined my passion with the books that constitute a cultural link between past and present and I started collecting them, taking pains as I did so to collect books about Istanbul as well.
Why such a preference?
I belong to this city. There are representatives of this city’s culture both in the past and today. I made it my goal to be a cultural representative striving to add value to the city in which he lives, and I am going forward in line with that objective. I am trying to achieve my goal through books, the most important symbols of culture.
Istanbul Library – We live in the age of the internet. – Are old printed books still popular and functional in your view?
Yes. Not only that but books can give you far more accurate and useful information than the internet. The knowledge you derive from books sticks in your mind longer and is of higher quality.
How did the idea of sharing your collection arise?
I believe that the more books are used, the more their pages are turned and they are touched by human hands, the more they live. The bottom line is that books are written to be read. As you read them, they enter into communication with you and offer you a valuable asset. If I kept my books at home, very few people would have access to them. I on the other hand have a collection that at the moment is open to anyone who wants it. Knowledge is multiplied and acquires meaning through sharing.
