Each of Mitra Tabrizian’s staged photographic tableaux contains a compelling, condensed narrative; a carefully constructed image that critiques contemporary life in Iran.

Her photomontage, Surveillance (1989) is a panoramic assembly of three key periods in Iranian contemporary history. It illustrates the role of the West and the clergy in Iranian politics and the serious implications for women’s identity. On the left is an allusion to Operation Ajax, which overthrew Prime Minister Mossadegh. On the right, the handshake which brought the clergy to power in 1979. The central image encapsulates events in 1982, the year when Iranian women lost many of their rights: family protection law was abandoned, the veil became compulsory and co-education was banned.

Tehran 2006 looks at the reality of everyday life and the ordinary in extraordinary times. Conceptually the project is concerned with survival, as individuals in the diverse crowd are all struggling: a taxi driver, factory worker, builder, cleaner, dressmaker, servant and caretaker. All the characters play themselves. The landscape shows they live literally and physically on the edge; these are the people most affected by economic sanctions and possible military action.