“Woman – Life – Freedom – Equality – Fraternity”, the art of creating links

RFI : The Palais de Tokyo in Paris is the largest contemporary art center in France, even in Europe, located a few hundred meters from the Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran. How would you describe your installation inside the Palais de Tokyo ?

Hanieh Delecroix : Here we see hashtags “#MahsaAmini which I installed on September 22, 2022. On September 16, when this young girl, Mahsa Amini, was killed for a lock of hair that was sticking out of her headscarf, there was a protest movement in Iran, a beginning of revolution. And the Iranian diaspora has mobilized to help Iranians in their country. They asked us to be their voice. We mobilized for the people who were suffering. So I asked myself: how can I, as an artist, be the voice of Iranian men and women in Iran? It seemed obvious to me to inform my French compatriots about what is currently happening in Iran. Because it is the silence that is difficult. It’s also ignorance that means we can’t help them. By talking about Iran, by making the situation known to my French compatriots, this could be a way of carrying the voice of these Iranian women and men. So my goal is to inform.

Why did you add in your installation the two words “ Equality and “Brotherhood » to the slogan « Woman – Life – Freedom of the women’s freedom movement in Iran ?

I added those two words because the idea was for France to grab the hand of these young Iranian men and women. I found that there is still a word that was in common and that it had to be used for it to be a link. If we create a link, then we can raise the voice of the Iranian people.

You were born in 1974 in Iran, you have been living in France since 1978. Your facilities Woman – Life – Freedom – Equality – Fraternity and your actions are located and take place in French institutions. What is for you the role, the responsibility, the power of the French institutions in this fight for the freedom of women in Iran? ?

Initially, in France, we did not hear our president. He took two months to talk about the Iranian situation. Going through cultural or university institutions was, on the one hand, an opportunity for me to say to my Iranian compatriots: Carry on, France supports you “. At the same time, it was also a snub to the French government. Since then, France has taken a stand and listens to the voice of the Iranian people. You just have to see in front of the entrance to the Palais de Tokyo where posters have been installed.

What is your artistic approach to approaching visitors to the Palais de Tokyo or other institutions where your installations are located? ?

It’s a hashtag. It’s very simple, with black writing on a white background. It’s not at all my usual artistic style. Usually, I work three colors: black, blue and white. Here, it’s a simple, symbolic invitation, around a column around which we can turn. So, if you don’t know who Mahsa Amini is, this hashtag invites you to go to search engines to find out who this woman is. And when you type in “Mahsa Amini”, you’ll get the full history of what’s been happening in Iran since at least September 16. For me, it’s important to inform so that the public then, in turn, shares around the situation in Iran.

Beyond your installation, you also performed at the Palais de Tokyo, At the street corner. How did the public react to this very personal action? ?

With this performance, I said to myself: maybe it’s time to reach out to the public and not wait for the public to see this installation. I thought of those young people in Iran who – to support each other – take to the streets and hide in their fist a candy, a sweet, and a word. A word that can be Woman – Life – Freedom “, Or ” Don’t be afraid, we’re all together “, Or ” How beautiful you are with your hair in the wind “. They make a check in the street, with a clenched fist, one person meets another. They make themselves one check, one opens his hand, and there is this present, this message of support for the other, for the unknown. I did this performance here, at the Palais de Tokyo, a few weeks ago, and I admit, I was overwhelmed. This allowed me to interact with the public. We talked, discussed, sometimes I stayed half an hour to talk about the situation in Iran. I have always thought that we are all interdependent and what happens in Iran, of course, has an effect here. When the freedom of a woman in Iran is violated, that of a French woman is too.

Your hashtag is also an invitation to be together. What feedback have you had from people in Iran ?

They are happy that we are their voice. I have really tender, very moving messages. They also send me videos, information… They are sensitive to the fact that we, in France, are going to share information and we are not going to leave them in silence.

Your installation has been received by many institutions. The Palais de Tokyo was the first, followed by the City of Science and Industry, the National School of Decorative Arts (ENSAD), the faculty of Nanterre, the Sorbonne, Sciences Po Paris, the Monnaie de Paris, the Laure Roynette gallery, the National Institute of Art History (INHA), the Palais de la Porte Dorée… Were there also institutions that refused to host your installation? ?

Yes, there are institutions that refused. Or institutions that have not replied to me. Either the answer was: We are chilly ! That was the word that was used: ” We are cautious when it comes to Iran “. But, over time, some come back to me, and I continue, I solicit them again. And what is marvelous also, I am helped by institutions which communicate information between them. I was able to make an installation at the Collection Lambert in Avignon, the installation was also welcomed at the Frac in Corsica… The French, in the four corners of the country, are sensitive to what is happening in Iran.

Violence against women is regularly in the headlines: there was the #BringBackOurGirls initiative after the abduction of girls by Boko Haram in Nigeria, the rape of women as a weapon of war in Congo, the oppression of women in Afghanistan … On the other hand, your installation is probably the first artistic action committed and with a political aim for the freedom of women in another country which openly enters cultural and artistic institutions in France. How do you explain that ?

The question already arises: is this the place of the cultural institution? Obviously. The answer is unfortunately in the sad prison of Evin, in Tehran. Many intellectuals and artists are in this prison. The regime has imprisoned artists who do not have the right to express themselves. They are gagged. I find it interesting that cultural institutions welcome this word and can defend this cause. What is happening in Iran is incredible. With three words: “Women – Life – Freedom”, these Iranian women, this Iranian youth have changed the course of history and, I hope, will change the face of the world. The fact that it’s a revolution driven by women, and young people, it hasn’t really happened, it’s the first time. In any case, for me, and perhaps other people of Iranian nationality living abroad, the wall of fear has come down. Me, it’s the first time that I’m not afraid. Yes, I will defend these women, these men, these children, because we must not forget that it is also children who are attacked. We have to talk about it, because it exists. And above all, it must stop.

March 8 is International Women’s Day. Does the courage of Iranian women also give strength to fight for women’s rights in France? ?

Yes, and not only in France. These Iranian women are today an example for the whole world. Every day, at the risk of their lives, they continue the fight, bare hands against aggressive and armed men. They continue, they are there, they are in the street, whatever their age. This does not only affect students, high school and college girls, but also primary school children, who unfortunately, too, have been victims ofgas attacks.

► This Wednesday, March 8, at 6:30 p.m., the artist Hanieh Delecroix will participate at the Palais de la Porte Dorée, in Paris, alongside Mariam Pirzadeh, Rana Gorgani and Ariana Vafadari, at the evening of support for Iranian women who fight for their freedom.