In regards to myself and women, life, freedom

In the tumult of post-revolutionary Iran in 1979, my story unfolded—a narrative common to many women of my generation. It all began the day we were ordered to change schools, ours being forced to shut down. A coeducational school, deemed unacceptable by the new holders of power. For a 9-year-old girl, this change was monumental. I quickly realized I no longer had the right to attend school without wearing the veil. That's where our struggle began, in the arena of our double-sided lives. A public life, where we were compelled to conceal our true nature, our thoughts, our way of dressing. We self-censored at every step outside, in an incessant game of masks, while inside, in our private lives, we aspired to a modern, secular existence, imbued with freedom and love.

At the age of 35, I made the bold decision to leave my homeland for France, in search of freedom. I left behind my social life, my ties, and embarked on a new chapter in France, my adopted country. The memory of my last trip to Iran in 2009 remains etched in my mind. I then asked my family and friends to pose for photos, once unveiled, revealing our true selves, once veiled, as we were on the streets. Some bravely agreed to show their true faces, embodying our inner and outer duality. Three of them are now featured in the collection of the Lyon museum, thus bearing witness to our silent struggle.

However, twelve of them declined, preferring to remain in the shadows. I then asked them to write their reasons, thus hiding their faces but revealing the invisible barriers that hold them back. Their responses, marked by fear and social constraints, revealed the oppressive reality in which they still live in Iran. But today, these twelve women, anonymous yet powerful, no longer hide only behind their veil; they openly defy the dictatorial regime that oppresses them. They fight to break the chains of oppression, for life, for freedom. And soon, I believe, they will triumph over this obsolete regime, finally paving the way for a future where women can breathe freely, where their lives will no longer be hindered by unjust barriers.