Documenting Migrant Graffiti in the Borderscapes of the Eastern Mediterranean

Abstract

This study explores the under-documented conditions of clandestine migrants along Turkey's western coast during the long summer of migration in 2015. While much attention has been directed toward border crossings and asylum processes, there is limited focus on the informal migration stations where refugees and migrants wait prior to sea passage. Through archaeological and photogrammetric documentation conducted during the Transient Traces project, this work sheds light on the material traces and lived experiences within these transient spaces. A central focus is the graffiti left behind in two abandoned buildings used by clandestine migrants mainly in 2015 and 2016. These graffiti are ephemeral and significant visual records of displacement, memory, and survival. Unlike urban graffiti, these markings are created with improvised tools under high-stress conditions, making them highly vulnerable to erasure and difficult to document. Their documentation poses unique challenges but also offers critical insights into the conditions of clandestine migrants. To address these challenges, full photographic coverage of the buildings was conducted using a Nikon D800 with wide-angle optics and a flash to capture geometric and textural detail. The resulting image sets enabled the creation of high-resolution 3D models of the buildings and orthophotomosaics of the graffiti-covered walls therein, forming a durable digital archive of otherwise transient marks. Despite poor lighting, narrow interiors, and stress during the documentation a comprehensive, high-quality dataset was derived, providing a strong foundation for further translation, analysis, and dissemination of these hidden visual traces.