Women in Purdah |
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Women in Purdah is the result of a piece I heard on NPR about the up to 50,000 Muslim women in Bosnia who were trying to move on after being assaulted by Serbian soldiers. Rather than tell their families, who might disown them, many just kept quiet, going about their lives. I made four ladies in purdah, each piece holding a woman who may sometimes hide behind her veil. Three of the women live in a village of boxes referencing Eastern buildings. One woman is a brooch in a box with a pierced door, one is a ring which spins, showing a veil on one side, and the third is a tea ring, which is the top of a mosque when not in use. The fourth woman, a ring, rides into this village on a beaded elephant. Although the subject is horrible, I wanted to make the women somehow joyous, as they continue with their lives.
Tea Ring, above, is locked away in a mosque until the need for tea is apparent. Then, the key unlocks the ring, and when the ring is opened, a small mesh tea ball holding mint leaves is revealed. This piece was chosen as part of Refined III, Stephen F. Austin University, Nacogdoches, Texas, 2003.
Tea Ring, above, is locked away in a mosque until the need for tea is apparent. Then, the key unlocks the ring, and when the ring is opened, a small mesh tea ball holding mint leaves is revealed. This piece was chosen as part of Refined III, Stephen F. Austin University, Nacogdoches, Texas, 2003.
