Kubra Khademi (born 1989) is an Afghan performance artist based in Paris.
She studied fine arts at
Kabul University
Kabul University (KU; prs, دانشگاه کابل, translit= Dāneshgāh-e-Kābul; ps, د کابل پوهنتون, translit=Da Kābul Pohantūn) is one of the major and oldest institutions of higher education in Afghanistan. It is in the 3rd ...
before attending
Beaconhouse National University
Beaconhouse National University (BNU) is a private liberal arts university located in Lahore, in the province of Punjab, Pakistan.[Lahore
Lahore ( ; pnb, ; ur, ) is the second most populous city in Pakistan after Karachi and 26th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 13 million. It is the capital of the province of Punjab where it is the largest city. ...]
,
Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
on a scholarship. In Lahore she began to create public performances, a practice she continued upon her return to Kabul, where her work actively responded to a society dominated by extreme patriarchal politics. After performing her piece ''Armor'' in 2015, Khademi was forced to flee Afghanistan due to a
fatwa
A fatwā ( ; ar, فتوى; plural ''fatāwā'' ) is a legal ruling on a point of Islamic law (''sharia'') given by a qualified '' Faqih'' (Islamic jurist) in response to a question posed by a private individual, judge or government. A jurist i ...
and death threats. She is currently living and working in Paris.
Work
Through her practice, Khademi explores her life as a refugee and a woman.
Kubra & Pedestrian Sign/Kubra et les bonhommes piétons (2016)
In this video work Khademi walks the streets of Paris dressed as a pedestrian crossing sign. In place of green or red male figure, Khademi's crossing sign displays a female figure. The costume consists of a black dress and a light up pedestrian box affixed to her head; in the piece Khademi is seen standing next to street signs and adding the female figure to the urban landscape.
Eternal trial (2015)
Eternal Trial is a video performance that consists of a
long shot
In photography, filmmaking and video production, a wide shot (sometimes referred to as a full shot or long shot) is a shot that typically shows the entire object or human figure and is usually intended to place it in some relation to its surrou ...
of Khademi walking through an empty field in Noyers, France. As she comes closer to the camera, it is revealed that she is picking poppies off a white dress and discarding them in the field behind her.
Armor (2015)
In 2015, Khademi walked along a Kabul street dressed in custom-made metal armour which emphasised her breasts, buttocks, and groin. Underneath the armour, Khademi wore a traditional
hijab
In modern usage, hijab ( ar, حجاب, translit=ḥijāb, ) generally refers to headcoverings worn by Muslim women. Many Muslims believe it is obligatory for every female Muslim who has reached the age of puberty to wear a head covering. While ...
. Though the work was originally planned to have a twenty minute duration, Khademi was forced to abort the performance after only eight minutes and to seek refuge in a friend's car.
The project was inspired by Kubra's personal experiences of harassment, both on the particular Kabul street where she staged the work, and in general since her childhood. Through the project she hoped to address the sexual harassment women in Afghanistan face on a daily basis.
Khademi has stated that the performance explored her life as a woman and the limitations that come with being a woman in Afghanistan.
After the performance, Khademi received many threats and abusive messages. As a result, she was forced to flee Afghanistan by foot, and is currently living in exile in France. For Khademi, the result of her project emphasised the problems of extreme patriarchy and social imbalance in Afghan society.
Reception
After fleeing Afghanistan and settling in France, Khademi was awarded an MFA scholarship at
Pantheon Sorbonne University and was given the title of
Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et Letter by the Ministry of French Culture.
She was a featured artist at WALKING WOMEN (2016), presented by the
Walking Artists Network at Somerset House in London.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Khademi, Kubra
Living people
Performance artists
1989 births
Walking artists