Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden  /  Shirin Neshat: Facing History

This catalogue documents a major exhibition of work by Neshat, an Iranian-born, New York-based video artist, photographer and filmmaker, who examines the nuances of power and identity in the Islamic world.

  • Front cover features a woman with a hand over her chest has arabic writing imposed on her features from the “Book of Kings.”
  • Title page with frontispiece from “Fervor” shows a group in public divided by gender with a lone woman turning to the viewer.
  • Opening spread of an essay shows a portrait of the artist with her hands clasped in front.
  • Section opener features “Rapture”, a series about gender issues, depicting women in traditional clothing standing on a beach.
  • Spread highlights “I Am Its Secret”, with a woman in a hijab revealing only her eyes with arabic writing superimposed.
  • Spread of artist commentary on the artwork has the title of the work, “Turbulent,” on a full bleed field of yellow at left.
  • Spread of video stills from “Turbulent.” A man performs in front of a full audience while a woman performs in front of no one.
  • From the “Book of Kings,” a man and woman stand with their hands across their chests with arabic writing superimposed.