Shirin Neshat : Iran
Shirin Neshat was born near Tehran in 1957. Neshat’s earliest works were photographs, such as the Unveiling (1993) and Women of Allah(1993–97) series, which explore notions of femininity in relation to Islamic fundamentalism and militancy in her home country. Her subsequent filming works depart dramatically from overtly political content or critique, in favor of more poetic imagery and narratives. While these works hint at the restrictive nature of Islamic laws regarding women, they deliberately open onto multiple readings, reaching instead toward universal conditions. Collaboration has played an important role throughout Neshat’s career; Since 2003 Neshat has continued to probe the central themes (religion, violence, madness, and gender) and characters in Women Without Men through photographic series like Zarin (2005) and the film Faezeh(2008)
