A candid photo cycle about the life of modern Iran

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-01-10 02:10

Photographer Hossein Fatemi - the author of the documentary photo cycle "An Iranian Journey" - can rightly be called a "destroyer of myths." His pictures are a kind of revelation. He managed to show the viewer that Iran, which many of us have never seen, a country full of contrasts and contradictions.

For many Europeans, Iran is a closed state, suffering from the tyranny of power and ultra-conservative ideology. This is a country where public executions are carried out, people go out to protest actions with burning flags, and rumors about nuclear weapons are constantly circulating. Despite all these stereotypes promoted by domestic and foreign media, life in Iran is much more diverse and permissible than we used to think.

The government's official policy is to present Iranians to the world community as a religious and pious nation. True, behind the “iron curtain” of righteousness, one can see completely different portraits of the modern inhabitants of this country. People have fun at private parties, drink, smoke, play musical instruments - in a word, they live a full life. Of particular surprise are women who are still occasionally ready to change the traditional Muslim dress code. Hossein Fatemi emphasizes: "To experience all the possibilities offered by society is something that is instinctively inherent in a person."

Hossein Fatemi has worked hard to put together a collection of these impressive images. It's one thing to get to a rock concert, but it's quite another to sneak into a women's gym or lingerie department. There are many places in Iran where men are not allowed to enter, and there are some that, on the contrary, are officially prohibited for women to visit (for example, a billiard room). The photographer was rarely welcomed anywhere, because many Iranians are seriously afraid of losing their jobs due to the fact that they will be noticed for indecent activities. Having overcome all the difficulties, Hossein Fatemi still managed to complete his photo cycle, creating a stunningly beautiful and multifaceted portrait of Iran in the 21st century.