#Hoda Afshar

[more-than-ideas]

Hoda Afshar

[strathshepard]

Hoda Afshar found photo from Gulf Studies Centre archive

[eucanthos]

Hoda Afshar (IR, 1983)

Under Western Eyes series - The Westoxicated no. 2 - 2013 (87cmX100cm)

thnx thetehrantimes

https://www.hodaafshar.com/under-western-eyes

[proximitytogod]

Untitled #4 (Behold Series) Hoda Afshar, 2015.

[cosmicanger]

Hoda Afshar

Grace

2014

From the series In the exodus, I love you more 2014- ongoing

Pigment photographic print

[shaddad]

da fotógrafa iraniana hoda afshar

[scottelkartwork]

EXHIBITION

DRAWING / PAINTING / CERAMICS / PRINTMAKING

Museum of Contemporary Art

Sydney, Australia.

Things I connect with…

A visit to the MCA today. Various exhibitions. I connected most to the works featured in the photos above, including the work by Nicholas Smith, Decorators Touch, 2023. The disparate parts, the play of interior / exterior, dirty / clean, heavy / light, hard / soft, big / small. It had real moments to latch on to, like the little postcard sized collage works masking taped to the artwork in various places, breaking up large areas of colour, that were hand painted or sewn. The work must be about domesticity, and possibly the intimacy, and comfort experienced in this setting. The two organic ceramic works could represent figures, possibly people put on self-made pedestals, like a D.I.Y. Bunnings weekend project, and the other even an interior scene of a moment of intimacy on a mattress, this feeling heightened by the makeshift lovingly quilted walls hanging from the ceiling. To me, the work could be a metaphor for falling in love too quick, rushing into a domestic relationship without first setting up a solid foundation to build upon, rushing to build something quickly with someone without getting to know them properly, but based entirely on how great you think they are. The artist should be commended for making an inviting space filled with curious objects that only get more interesting upon closer inspection. For me, it was one of the only works across the many works viewed today, that didn’t fall apart the closer I physically got. I couldn’t get close enough. I wanted to touch it.

FROM THE MCA WEBSITE:

MCA Collection: Eight Artists.

Responding to notions of seriality, repetition and return. Featuring singular pieces by Sally Gabori, Raelene Kerinauia Lampuwatu, Emily Kame Kngwarreye, Naminapu Maymuru-White, Esme Timbery Judith Wright and Gulumbu Yunupiŋu, and Sandra Selig. They include dynamic depictions of significant cultural stories and practices, deeply personal kinship relations, matrilineal lineages as well as compelling relationships to the body.

MCA Curator, Manya Sellers

+

The National 4: Australian Art Now

Featuring new commissions and recent works by an intergenerational and culturally diverse group of artists and collectives, The National 4: Australian Art Now reflects how artists are responding to some of the most urgent and critical ideas of our times, imagining new ways of seeing and being in the world at a time of unprecedented change. Reflecting the latest evolutions in contemporary art, the exhibition includes works in diverse media including painting, photography, film, video, sculpture, installation, drawing, sound and performance, encompassing a range of experimental, process-based and socially engaged practices.

Hoda Afshar (VIC) Daniel Boyd (NSW) Eugene Carchesio (QLD) Allison Chhorn (SA) Léuli Eshrāghi (NT/QLD/Canada) Ivi (QLD/Aotearoa/Tonga) Diena Georgetti (VIC) Simryn Gill (NSW/Malaysia) Jilamara Arts and Crafts Association (NT) Mia Salsjö (VIC) Kieren Seymour (VIC) Nicholas Smith (VIC/USA) Isabelle Sully (The Netherlands/VIC) Amanda Williams (NSW) Rudi Williams (VIC)

MCA Curator Jane Devery.

[shamsabaddai-ardn516]

Photo's towards the brief: Spirits under my Kanga: The Ghosts of my Past, Present & Future

Sunset + Very Windy

Tools: Ancient Canon EOS700D, 18-55mm lens for versatility ( though it's rubbish when it gets dark because I have to set the shutter speed so slow to get the right amount of light in, but I held my breath when I pressed the shutter, and crossed my fingers). Tripod was useless due to gusts of wind. Recruited an assistant.

I had been waiting for these conditions, so when I realised I had a windy-as day, I tried setting up for this shoot immediately. The down side is that I also got a cloudy evening on the verge of rain at any moment, and the tide was low (high tide is at around noon at the moment). But I reckoned that it was now or never.

My plan was to showcase all my prized elements of 'home'. I have my antique chair I had come across & had to have (it's my dressing table chair). The Kanga, which is pretty much the only thing I have with me from my original home, I hadn't brought with me much else. And, the view, the Tāmaki River behind my current home, another love of mine. Plus, impromptu, but my Loki decided he wanted to be in the shoot as well, so I tried to incorporate him in, because that felt right too. Who knows, I might get something super gorgeous, though it's tricky working with unpredictability.

My inspiration is the work of Hoda Afshar, how she makes the intangible tangible. Specifically her work in 'Speak The Wind'.(https://prix.pictet.com/cycles/human/hoda-afshar)

Also, for this idea, I needed to recruit my partner as my assistant, so that the kanga wouldn't fly off into oblivion.

I really love how some of these turned out, the moody light is beautiful, and I love the movement & feel that I managed to capture. I would have never known to try and capture the spirit of home this way without the inspiration of Hoda Afshar's work, so learning about other photographers and their views to find someone's work that truly inspires my artistic direction (in my own way), helped me heaps with creative blocks.

I don't think these are perfect, I'm not working with the best equipment, or the best weather, and my camera-experience isn't up there... but the concept is there, and hopefully that helps.

[somkieth]

Hoda Afshar -Speak the Wind

The photography series "Speak the Wind" by Hoda Afshar, released in 2021, is a captivating and emotionally stirring body of work that goes beyond mere photographs. Through her lens, Afshar beautifully captures the intimate connection between the inhabitants of the islands in the Strait of Hormuz and the relentless winds that play a pivotal role in shaping their lives. What sets Afshar's work apart is the poignant and powerful way in which she presents these island people - blending black and white with color to evoke a sense of timelessness and ethereal beauty.

One of the most striking aspects of Afshar's portrayal of the island people is the deeply personal nature of her images. Each photograph seems to offer a glimpse into the private world of the individuals she captures, allowing viewers to forge a connection with them on a profound level. It is as though we are granted access to a realm where the boundaries between the elements and the human actors are blurred, highlighting the intrinsic and inseparable connection between the two.

i feel One particularly striking image is of the Quran, a sacred text revered by many. The depiction of such an important object in the photographs may strike some as surprising and intriguing, prompting us to consider the boundaries between art and reverence, and the potential conflicts that can arise when using sacred symbols in an artistic context.

Her photographs evoke memories, traditions, and spirit in viewers. Speak the Wind offers me a luxurious experience of the meaningful balance between the human spirit and nature, as if she were conveyingthe humble feeling of a person in the face of a storm, while at the same time conveying

the capacity of that person to withstand the wind and the force of nature.i love the way image of the Quran, perhaps salvaged from a war-torn area, adds another layer of complexity to the photograph. It is a reminder of the impact of conflict on cultural heritage and the profound stories that objects can convey. It is this juxtaposition of fragility and resilience, reverence and destruction that makes Afshar’s work so interesting and thought-provoking.

i think Afshar’s exploration of the rugged beauty of the land and her ability to convey deeper stories in her photographs provoke emotions and thoughts in the viewer. Through her lens, we are invited to ponder the intersection of nature, culture and spirituality, and to appreciate the complex textures of life that shape our existence.

[aditirkumar]

Hoda Afshar -Speak the Wind

Speak the Wind by Hoda Afshar (2021) touches me very emotionally as it was not only a series of photo’s for me but rather a connection between island people in the Strait of Hormuz and the powerful winds that govern their lives. What impresses most is in which Afshar portrays these people – black and white and colour to convey the timeless, ethereal spirt. Her images are so personal they made me feel like I’m peeping through their private sphere into a realm where the elements and the actors are inextricably connected.

Of all those techniques that Afshar employs, it is the long exposure approach which I find the most effectiv. the landscapes with a sense of the otherworldly or the supernatural, or at least the elemental, as if the wind, and the sea. The movement between the wind and water is mutually restricted while the effect is still shown. It gives one the impression that the force of nature is only just beyond our grasp. It is for this reason that the portraits feel even more powerful. The backgrounds are rather obscured; this further enhances the feelings on their faces.

Where I feel impressed is Afshar’s passion for rough surfaces of the ground, is by texture. Just like their clothes, their houses, and everything around them seem to be branded with the breeze, dust, and waves. They inherited the texture of the environment they exist in, both, material and elegant.

Her photography makes the audience think about memory, tradition and spirituality.Speak the Wind gives me a rather luxurious experience of the empowering harmony of the human soul and the nature as if she conveys the feeling of inferiority of a person in the face of the storm and, at the same time, the potential of the person to withstand wind and the nature forces.

I simply want say that watching one of Hoda’s photograph I discovered the following photograph quite interesting, the one with the Quran. It could easily have been seen as controversial picture, at least as a photo that was staged; there are few instances where something as sacred as a book, let alone one as holy as The Quran,  is actually destroyed for an artistic shot. Just thinking about that makes me stop and wonder about those countless people who value and respect it. On the other hand, it might as well be the case that this Quran was picked up from the war zone as an effect of violence in the war. A part from this issue I think that is what makes the photo striking to me .

[more-than-ideas]

Hoda Afshar

[strathshepard]

Hoda Afshar found photo from Gulf Studies Centre archive

[lthn]

David Rozetsky 'Air to Atmosphere'

I recently found Air to Atmosphere by chance and decided to give it a look. Air to Atmosphere consists of 2 parts that are a video installation and photographic portraits of related individuals. The one-hour-film is an interview format of different people from the queer community, narrating through their childhood, their lives, their struggles, their fights for the rights that LGBTIQA+ people have today. Watching the film was a mind-opening experience as I've never been one to be interested in these things, especially being a heterosexual person myself.

I could have skimmed it but I decided to not, I sat tight through all because I wanted to know more about them, about their stories, I understood that like many other movements, power is never given away without any sort of struggling.

The portraits are also powerfully communicative. When I first saw it I thought to myself, even without prefacing it being about queer presentation, many of them've already told the whole stories (and you can actually click on each to read Rozetsky's interview with them as well).

The Air to Atmosphere homepage that shows the posters with their quotes:

Air to Atmosphere Foreword:

There's a lot to unfold and I'm not good with words so I surely won't be able to portray all my thoughts. However one thing that stays with me afterward is, the fight for their rights today, it is no less noble than any other in the historical records. And not just "heroic, grand scenes" that were told, moments of trembling, running, hiding cowardly were also presented, proof to show that they aren't any less human than us. Like any heterosexual individual, they/we all fear being rejected, outcast and punished just for being ourselves.

Screenshot of the part that really hits me. This was exactly what I saw through Hoda Afshar 'behold' as well.

[ardn631-serenatalasasa]

WEEK 3 PHOTOGRAPHERS

Yousuf Karsh

Yousuf Karsh is a Canadian-American photographer, known for his notable portraits. Best described as one of the best photographers in the 20th century. His images are best known for their dramatic lighting, creating shadows, emotion and detail which became his portrait style.

Hoda Afshar

Hoda Afshar is an Iranian photographer based in Melbourne. With her images she plays with the presentations of images, merging staged images with reality as she states that she always thought of staged images to be closer to reality than documentary images.

Annie Leibovitz

Annie was best known for taking this image of John Lennon and Yoko Ono. She often takes dramatic, quirky and iconic portraits of celebrities and her photography style is known to be carefully staged (settings etc), lighting and the use of colour.

[cosmicanger]

Hoda Afshar

Crease

2014

From the series In the exodus, I love you more 2014 – ongoing

Pigment photographic print