Women, Life, Freedom

2022 – 2023*

As an artist living in the diaspora, I have always been deeply influenced by social and political issues. In this series, I have been profoundly affected by the struggles that have impacted the women of my homeland during this period. Women, Life, Freedom reflects on the ongoing fight of women for their most basic human rights and serves as a response to contemporary history—a history I have lived and that has deeply shaped me.

In my work, the colors black and red are prominent: black symbolizes my homeland’s dark and sorrowful history, mourning, and pain. With black, I mourn the fate of these women and of myself—as a woman in exile due to political circumstances. Red represents anger, blood, and the cycle of violence that persists throughout my homeland’s history.

The historical objects I incorporate—such as old sewing machines and women’s shoes—refer to the complex and turbulent history of women’s issues. For me, these objects, along with mirrors, serve as reminders that we must confront our past and examine the challenges of the present within their historical, cultural, and political contexts.

*During this period, the death of Jina (Mahsa) Amini and other girls under the age of 18 drew global attention to the widespread human rights violations in my homeland.