Seconded By: Simon Newton,
I come from a war-torn family. My parents were forced to leave their city during the Iraq-Iran war and their family settled in different cities in Iran and the world. I was born in the middle of the war and that's why I never experienced family gatherings. I lived in different cities and I was shocked by the cultural diversity in different parts of Iran since I was a child. It is as if several lands have been gathered in one country, and at the same time, I have felt empty due to not having any city or state. Later, I realized that not only the war, but the process of modernization of Iran led to the disintegration of family groups. In this project, by traveling to different regions of Iran, a big country with diverse geography and culture, I am trying to search for tribes that have managed to preserve the lifestyle of their ancestors. I am trying to show the position of women in the family. Women who strive for the freedom and education of their children despite the limitations and social inequalities and at the same time are the guardians of the culture and art of their ancestors. my main question in this project is: What is the position of women among these traditional and family gatherings? What leads to their suffering and pleasure? Do the traditions that surround them lead to more restrictions and gender discrimination, or do they cope better with the sufferings of discrimination within the family and with the help of their female group?
Qashqaie Nomad women
Nomadic women age earlier than urban women because of living in the heart of harsh nature Zeinab is a Gashgayi ethnic woman and is only fortyeight years old The moment of this photography was the only time that Zeinab could sit for a while throughout her daily duties She has three daughters and two sons and become a grandmother in her youth Her twin daughters sitting beside her are going to the city and the boarding schools for long periods to study and therefore Zeinab has to manage life on her own She even sees her grandchildren through video calls on a smartphone She is from the Ghashghay s tribe in FiroozAbad in the center of Iran Women s higher education is very rare among nomadic families but Zeinab and her husband have encouraged the twins to continue their education and now the road is open for their granddaughters When life is on the move every kind of change is as natural as its appearance
A gathering of dolls
In this photo Zahra s family is gathered together They make local dolls in the style of their mothers These dolls used to be sewn by village women in the past and now with the efforts of Zahra and her family it has become a home business for village women These dolls are inspired by family members in the past and look like themselves Their story is written on the back of each doll Zahra s family sometimes gather in the Hosseiniyah to see Atoqeh eighty years old woman under the pretext of sewing dolls and forget the hardships of life for a moment This village dates back to ancient Iran Atoqeh has nine children and many grandchildren all of whom live in the city and insist on taking her to the city but Atoqeh refuses she repeatedly tells me the story of a time when one of her sons was a prisoner of war in Iraq The sorrow of those years is now reprised in her every day in her solitude But the villagers by gathering in the Hosseiniyah give life and vitality to her life
kordish nomad
Hajar who has lived a nomadic life for most of her life has been working since the age of eight learning handicrafts from her mother Those who live on the border between Iran and Iraqi Kurdistan had to take refuge in the mountains during the war to avoid air attacks Hagar now teaches her daughters and granddaughters handicrafts so that they can become independent and strong women
Mamagol
This is a family Hanabandan ceremony Henna Night in the 3 000-year-old port of Kong known as the Hidden Hanabandan attended only by the bride s family They put Henna on the bride s hands and sing happy poems and play the circle The ceremony is held in the bride and groom s room A room that until a few days ago was an ordinary white room in the house of the bride s parents has been now decorated by lady Mamagol This room is prepared for the stay of the bride and groom for a few months When the groom finds a separate proper house and the young couple relocates the room returns to its original condition Mamagol is the old woman in green who covers her face with Burka who was married at a young age with a lot of love but her husband has betrayed her many times and remarried and left the children of that marriage to Mamagol to raise Mamagol still loves her husband She is an independent woman and makes money by decorating rooms for brides and grooms
Women like mountains
Here is the house of Asma an eighty-year-old woman sitting in the middle of the picture in a house dug in the heart of the mountain The village Meymand where Asma was born and raised is a historical and rocky village of several thousand years that Zoroastrians have dug their houses in the mountain Today however grandmothers who have lost their spouses live there and host their children and grandchildren on weekends Asma has lost her husband for twenty years and lives alone She has eight children and 24 grandchildren all of whom live in the city She weaves kilims at home and sells local products to tourists and sometimes hosts intrusive guests Neighboring old women whose homes are in the heart of the mountains gather at her house in the morning to eat breakfast Despite the pain in their legs they have to climb a difficult path to meet each other
Women on the sea waves of palm trees
Abpakhsh in the south of Iran has one of the largest dense groves in the world The women of Abpakhsh have been famous for mat-weaving since ancient times Today Abpakhsh is the national city of the mat in Iran and the rural women around this city are still engaged in mat weaving The woman in black in this photo who lost her son about forty years ago in the Iran-Iraq war is still in black and mourning Khatoon is seventy-five years old and has dyed her hair black with henna and does not remember the number of grandchildren and their results She teaches mat weaving to the new generation of all village girls The lady is very funny She says that these jokes save her from grief
Silky hands
In northwest Iran in a village full of mud houses with only one hour of water a day women in colorful clothes weave the best silk carpets in the world The grandchildren of the family say that their biggest dream is to weave the most beautiful carpet The women of Doidokh village are the inventors of double-sided silk carpets most of which are exported to wealthy Arab countries along the Persian Gulf
Gozal, silent bride
The gazelle the woman in the middle of the photo is being prepared for the wedding before the groom follows her After marriage Turkmen brides must cover their faces in front of the groom s family and this custom is a sign of respect for the family This custom leads to torment for the women of the family They say that it is as if they have suffocated us under wide and thick cloths and yet they adhere to their customs and love them A paradox in their daily life
Sharveh, the window of the soul
The gazelle the woman in the middle of the photo is being prepared for the wedding before the groom follows her After marriage Turkmen brides must cover their faces in front of the groom s family and this custom is a sign of respect for the family This custom leads to torment for the women of the family They say that it is as if they have suffocated us under wide and thick cloths and yet they adhere to their customs and love them A paradox in their daily life
Raha
Raha the girl in the middle was three years old when her father discovered her musical talent after taking her to a concert From the age of four he was trained under the supervision of a singing teacher and a tambur master and now he teaches his classmates how to play the tambur She plays music in a society where it is still forbidden for women to sing and play but Raha and her friends have hope for the future and their instruments act as peaceful weapons for them
