This exhibition offers an unflinching and deeply moving portrayal of the stark realities faced by Afghan women under the Taliban’s repressive rule. Through the lens of Canadian-Iranian photographer Kiana Hayeri, this documentary project captures not only the daily struggles of these women but also their resilience and quiet acts of defiance in a world that seeks to erase them.
Between January and June 2024, Hayeri traveled across seven regions of Afghanistan, meeting over 100 women and girls whose fundamental rights have been systematically stripped away. Banned from education, employment, and public life, they now exist in a suffocating reality where even the smallest acts of independence—attending secret schools, creating art, or sharing moments of stolen joy—become acts of resistance.
The exhibition lays bare the devastating impact of a deeply patriarchal system that has enabled the Taliban to erase women from society. According to Amnesty International, these systematic restrictions may constitute a crime against humanity of gender-based persecution. No Woman’s Land brings their voices to the forefront through a powerful blend of photographs, videos, sketches, and collaborative artworks created with Afghan teenage girls, exposing a crisis too often overlooked.
Beyond documenting oppression, the project reveals the emotional toll on Afghan women, many of whom have lost all hope for the future. As one exiled women’s rights activist shared: “We have forgotten joy. It’s as if someone has locked me in a room and won’t let me out. Even food has no taste.”
More than an exhibition, No Woman’s Land is a testimony to the unbreakable spirit of Afghan women and a powerful call to bear witness to their untold stories.
Location:
Info
Location: Area Verde Camollia 85 |
Via del Romitorio, 4
Period: September 27th – November 23rd
Opening Time:
Friday: 03:00 pm-07:00 pm
Saturday-Sunday: 10:00 am-07:00 pm
Holidays: 10:00 am-07:00 pm
TICKET VALID FOR VISITING ALL THE EXHIBITIONS
Photographer Biography:
Kiana grew up in Tehran and moved to Toronto while she was still a teenager. Faced with the challenges of adapting to a new environment, she took up photography as a way of bridging the gap in language and culture. In 2014, a short month before NATO forces pulled out, Kiana moved to Kabul and stayed on for 8 years. Her work often explores complex topics such as migration, adolescence, identity and sexuality in conflict-ridden societies.
In 2014, Kiana was recognized as one of the emerging photographers by PDN 30 Under 30. In 2016, she received the Chris Hondros Fund Award as an emerging photographer. A grant from the European Journalism Center in 2017 supported her series on gender equality in Afghanistan. She was also awarded the Stern Grant in 2018 to continue her exploration of mental health among Afghan women. In 2020, Kiana earned the Tim Hetherington Visionary Award for her proposed project exposing the dangers of dilettante ‘hit & run’ journalism. Later that year, she became the 6th recipient of the James Foley Award for Conflict Reporting. In 2021, Kiana was honored with the prestigious Robert Capa Gold Medal for her photographic series Where Prison is Kind of a Freedom, documenting the lives of Afghan women in Herat Prison. In 2022, as part of The New York Times reporting team, she contributed to the work that won The Hal Boyle Award for The Collapse of Afghanistan and was shortlisted for the Pulitzer Prize in International Reporting. The same year, she was named the winner of the Leica Oskar Barnack Award for her portfolio, Promises Written On the Ice, Left In the Sun, providing an intimate look into the lives of Afghans from all walks of life.
