ARTIST STATEMENT
This work includes more than 50 Iranian women’s handwriting, which I asked them to write “Woman, Life, Freedom” in Farsi (زن زندگی آزادی) on social media. It is the main slogan of the women-led revolution, which people are chanting in the streets. During the protests, this slogan has become a part of the daily practice of Iranians. After collecting these manuscripts, I reproduced them to represent the unity of Iranian women worldwide. Both the women who are fighting in the streets in Iran and the women who were forced to leave the country. These handwritings are put together by weaving or using lines to show the solidarity of Iranian women in this fight. I demonstrate this unity by collecting the handwriting of women fighting for freedom on a daily basis.
As a daily practice, “Woman Life Freedom” gives meaning to our lives not along, but across and intertwined.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Elmira Yousefi is an Iranian interdisciplinary artist working in painting, printmaking, and installation. She received her MA in painting from Islamic Azad University Tehran in 2017, currently pursuing her MFA in printmaking at the University of Florida. She believes the hidden power of nature is closely related to the power of women, which is often ignored or suppressed in society. Her artworks reflect her encounters with nature and the accumulation of those experiences. Also, her recent works are influenced by the women-led revolution in her homeland.
© Elmira Yousefi