Farhang Foundation and LACMA Proudly Present Shirin Neshat and the film "Women without Men"

Source: Farhang Foundation & LACMA 

LOS ANGELES, CA, June 1, 2009 - Farhang Foundation announced today a program  featuring internationally renowned artist Shirin Neshat on June 15, 2009 at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art's (LACMA) Bing Theater at 8:00 pm.  The program includes screening of work-in-progress segments of her film "Women without Men" followed by a discussion between Shirin Neshat and Nasrin Rahimieh, Professor of Comparative Literature and Maseeh Chair and Director of Dr. Samuel M. Jordan Center for Persian Studies and Culture School of Humanities at the University of California, Irvine.

"Women Without Men," Shirin Neshat's first feature length film, is based on a magic realist novel written by Iranian author Sharnush Parsipur.  The narrative interweaves the lives of four Iranian women during the summer of 1953, a pivotal moment in Iranian history when an American led Coup d'état brought down the democratically elected Prime Minister Dr. Mohammed Mossadegh and reinstalled the Shah to power. The film chronicles the lives of the four characters in parallel manner.  Each woman appearing to be suffering and running away from some sort of social, cultural or sexual oppression; yet their lives mysteriously converge in an orchard where they attempt to create their own society. The story follows the construction and eventual breakdown of this 'utopian' society. The film is expected to be released in 2009-2010.

This event is ticketed. Tickets are free-of-charge, and will be available at the Museum's box office one hour prior to the start of the program.  LACMA is located at 5905 Wilshire Blvd. Los Angeles CA 90036.

For more information about this program, please visit www.farhang.org.
 

About Shirin Neshat
Shirin Neshat was born 1957, Qazvin, Iran. Although she lives and works in New York, her artwork explores issues of her native society, Iran, especially the position of women. She uses the specifics of her background culture to create works that communicate universal ideas about loss, meaning, and memory.  Shirin Neshat's photographs and videos have been included in many international exhibitions and have received numerous recognitions and awards. In 1996 Neshat was
awarded a grant from the Louis Comfort Tiffany Foundation.

About Nasrin Rahimieh
Dr. Rahimieh's research has focused on intercultural encounters between Iran and the West, modern Persian literature, literature of exile and displacement, women's writing, and post-revolutionary Iranian cinema.   Her publications include Oriental Responses to the West: Comparative Essays on Muslim Writers from the Middle East (Brill, 1990) and Missing Persians: Discovering Voices in Iranian Cultural Heritage (Syracuse University Press, 2001).

About Farhang Foundation
Farhang Foundation is a non-religious, non-political and not-for-profit foundation established in 2008 to celebrate the art and culture of Iranian-Americans in its widest extent. The foundation supports academic activities in Southern California by funding university programs, publications and conferences. The foundation also supports cultural programs such as celebration of Nowruz and Mehregan, theater, dance performances, films screenings and poetry reading in Southern California. Farhang Foundation, in cooperation with various cultural and academic institutions plans major programs and exhibitions about Iran and its culture. For more info visit: www.farhang.org.

About LACMA
Since its inception in 1965, LACMA has been devoted to collecting works of art that span both history and geography and represent Los Angeles' uniquely diverse population. Today, the museum features particularly strong collections of Asian, Latin American, European, and American art, as well as a new contemporary museum on its campus, BCAM. With this expanded space for contemporary art, innovative collaborations with artists, and an ongoing transformation project, LACMA is creating a truly modern lens through which to view its rich encyclopedic collection.  For more info visit: www.lacma.org.

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