“Rebellious Fragments”
Sofi Basseghi
18 Mar → 16 Apr 2016

Sofi Basseghi employs documentary and video art practices to reveal an image of female Iranian rebellion. Her work observes the complexities and contradictions within the dichotomy of a misogynist and theocratic governed Iran. She is interested in the manner in which religious ideologies, superstitious belief systems and an ancient traditional culture impact the contemporary female Iranian identity.

Her work is often cognitive and visceral, informed by dialogues and exchanges between her own experiences as well as the experiences of women mostly from her own generation, women born during the Iran/Iraq war. She is particularly driven by the hidden and untold stories from these war babies who are products of the 1979 Islamic Revolution. Her work intends to alter misguided perceptions by unveiling the rebellious nature of Iranian women living in and emerging from an oppressive society. These narratives collected in social outings are interwoven with a collection of videos gathered during solitary outings capturing a multitude of perspectives expressed through the presence of majestic landscapes, urban cityscapes, the eerie crumbling of historical ruins and voyeuristic observations of women going about their everyday lives.

Through her practice, Basseghi aims to create a window for the exchange of dialogues between women’s lives in Iran and in Australia exhibiting both an ‘as is’ existence through documentary and a ‘perceived’ existence through narrative, dream and mythical folklore.

Sofi Basseghi is an Iranian-born video artist, photographer and director based in Melbourne. She completed a Masters of Fine Arts degree in 2007 at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) and pursued further graduate studies in directing in 2011 at the Victorian College of the Arts school of Film and Television. She is currently a PhD (Art) candidate at RMIT.

Her award winning films, photographs and video work have been exhibited at internationally acclaimed venues and galleries including the Australian Centre for the Moving Image, Perth Institute of Contemporary Art, Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art and the Palazzo delle Esposizioni in Rome.