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By WomenNow
October 4, 2022
Life, by Soolmaz Izadi. Photo: @soolmaz.izadi
Guadalupe Rodríguez
Traditionally, Iranian women cut their hair as a sign of mourning. In recent weeks, this gesture has been repeated in protest over the death of Mahsa Amini, the 22-year-old girl arrested for the morality police for not wear the hijab properly and died in prison on September 16. The scissors have filled the streets of Iran, but also social media. Mahsa Amini's name in Persian became one of the most shared hashtags on Twitter until the Iranian government shut down access to social media. But it was too late. The gunpowder of the protest has spread throughout the world under the motto “Women, life, freedom” (“zan, zendegi, azadi” in Persian) and with loose hair, Mahsa Amini's haircut and face as symbols of this movement.
The street protests following the young woman's death were violently repressed. Dozens of people have died and hundreds have been arrested. However, against art, weapons are useless. The influence of her cry has crossed the borders of Iran and reached other countries, from Turkey to Germany, from the United States to Argentina, from Sweden and Greece to Spain. Artists from multiple disciplines and varied styles have joined this movement in the hope that art will help people. women of Iran to be free.
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From urban art to Instagram
Since a theocratic regime was established in the country in 1979, the street art It has been one of the avenues of expression for young Iranians against the restriction of freedoms and rights, filling the streets with messages in favor of freedom and peace. The Iranian youth rebellion has colored the streets, especially since the 'green movement' (also called the 'Iranian Spring'), which emerged in the wake of the 2009 presidential elections. Now, the death of Mahsa Amini has detonated a militant graphic movement which thus expresses the feelings of a society oppressed by its laws and moral police.
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Iranian illustrators, graphic designers, photographers or digital artists, both residents and expatriates, such as Ghazal Foroutan, Soolmaz Izadi, Mahdieh Farhadkiaei, Amirhossein Darafsheh, Atieh Sohrabi either Touraj Saberivand, They lit the flame with images that used elements already present in Iranian culture, from the colors of the flag to traditional typography or the famous Liberty Building in Tehran.
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International expansion
Artists from other countries have not been slow to take over. The architectural designer Tim Fu, belonging to the Zaha Hadid CODE architecture studio in London, has designed a monumental sculpture “inspired by femininity and courage,” which simulates a head with hair blowing in the wind.
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The Mexican children's illustrator Margarita Sada She also expressed solidarity with women in Iran: “One of the bravest struggles I have ever seen, demanding their rights through unparalleled protest.”
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And “22” is the title of the proposal that the Turkish watercolorist has shared Hülya Özdemir in reference to the age of the deceased young woman.
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“Coming from a refugee background, I know that freedom is priceless. Freedom of expression, freedom to study, etc., so let's not take our freedom for granted in the first world,” writes the young rapper and artist. Robin Reza, In the Instagram post, where he shares the portrait of Mahsa Amani he drew, he sends his strength and love to his brothers and sisters in Iran. “Together we are stronger. Freedom for the people.”
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Between them all, and through their artistic contribution, they are sharing an energy that feeds back every time an image is shared on social media or the hashtag is mentioned. #mahsamani, nurturing the hope for change. Art will set us free, it is said. In Iran, that is their hope. And the loose hair of a woman has become the symbol of that freedom.
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