Author Description

"In her mesmerizing films and photographs, Shirin Neshat (Iranian-American, b. Qazvin, 1957) examines the nuances of power and identity in the Islamic world--particularly in her native country of Iran, where she lived until 1975. This book, the companion volume to the Smithsonian's Hirshhorn Museum exhibition of the same name, presents an array of Neshat's most compelling works, illuminating the points at which cultural and political events have inflected her artistic practice. Included are the "Women of Allah" photographs that catapulted the artist to international acclaim in the 1990s; lyrical video installations, which immerse the viewer in imagery and sound; and the photographic series "The Book of Kings"--including its latest chapter, Our House Is on Fire, created in the aftermath of the recent Egyptian revolutions. Commenting on freedom and loss, Neshat's deeply humanistic art is at once personal, political, and allegorical, and this book is an essential testament to its enduring power"--