2018/2019
Excerpt of Olympe de Gouges, "Declaration of the Rights of Woman and the Female Citizen"
Quote of Tahirih
"You can kill me as soon as you like but you can never stop the emancipation of women."
Tahirih, 1814- 1852, Iran
Quote of Olympe de Gouges
“Women has the right to mount the scaffold, she must equally have the right to mount the rostrum […].“
Olympe de Gouges, 1748- 1793, France
During her one month-long residency in Teheran in 2018, Elisa Andessner asked 30 women the question: „What is your message? What do you have to say?“. This question triggered moving conversations and common thinking about politics, human and women's rights. Future visions were as well described as everyday occurences. Within detailed talkes the interviewed women very openly gave insights into their realities of life. At first quite affected, Elisa Andessner started to research into the history and the current situation of women's rights in Austria and Europe. The numberous conversations the artist had with most diverse women eventually were processed in form of artistic photography and video. Andessner asked the Teherani women to write down their messages (which build the basis of the project) in Farsi handwriting and labled them, inspired by the iranian artist Shirin Neshat, on her own face. The idea of literal incorporation of the persian language and culture, in which writing is a traditional art form, gave the impuls to do so. Besides that, it was the usage of naked skin as a mean of transportation of messages.
Während ihrer einmonatigen Residency in Teheran 2018 hat Elisa Andessner dreißig Frauen folgende Fragen gestellt: „Was ist deine Botschaft? Was hast du zu sagen?“. Die Fragen lösten bei jeder
Begegnung bewegte Gespräche und gemeinsames Nachdenken über Politik, Menschen- und Frauenrechte aus. Zukunftsvisionen wurden genauso geschildert wie alltägliche Begebenheiten. In ausführlichen
Gesprächen gaben die befragten Frauen in Teheran sehr offen Einblick in ihre Lebensrealitäten. Zunächst sehr betroffen davon, begann Elisa Andessner nach ihrer
Rückkehr auch in Österreich zur Geschichte bzw. aktuellen Situation der Achtung der Frauenrechte in Österreich und Europa zu forschen. Die vielen Gespräche, die die Künstlerin dazu mit den
unterschiedlichsten Frauen führte, manifestieren sich schließlich in den hier präsentierten Foto- und Videoarbeiten. Die ‚Botschaften’ der Teheraner Frauen, welche den Ausgangspunkt des Projekts
bilden, ließ sich Elisa Andessner in Farsi aufschreiben und beschriftete damit in Anlehnung an die iranischstämmige Künstlerin Shirin Neshat selbst ihr Gesicht. Das buchstäbliche
Sich-Einverleiben der persischen Sprache und Kultur, in der Schrift eine traditionelle Kunstform darstellt, war hierbei der Impuls. Ebenso wie die Verwendung der nackten Haut als Transportmittel
von Botschaften.
Biografie Tahirih (Fatima Baraghani)
Tahirih (born in 1814 in Qazvin, Iran; dies in 1852 in Teheran, Iran) was a persian Poet, activist for women's rights and an influential theologian of the
Bahá'í Faith. In 1848 she appeared unveilled before 80 men during the Conference of Badasht and gave an eloquent speech. Soon she was arrested and executed in secret.
Tahirih, "Point by Point": famous poem by Tahirih in persian writing.
Collected statements of interviews with iranian women in Teheran 2018, in persian writing.
Biographie Olympe de Gouges
Olympe de Gouges (born in 1748 in Montauban, died in 1793 in Paris, France) was a french playwright and political activist who demanded the same rights for
women and men in France. In 1791 she wrote and published the "Declaration of the Rights of Woman and the Female Citizen." She was executed by Guillotine for attacking the regime.
Tahirih, "Point by Point": famous poem by Tahirih in Englisch.
Collected statements of interviewed, iranian women in Teheran 2018, in English