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Woman Life Freedom<\/em> consists of two works from Neshat\u2019s Women of Allah<\/em> series (1993-97): Moon Song<\/em> and Unveiling<\/em>. \u201cFor me, the meaning of the text and the bullets [in Moon Song<\/em>] suggests the modern and contemporary reality of Iran, while the paisley and other floral motifs are symbolic of Iranians\u2019 rich ancient Persian history,\u201d Neshat says in a statement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIn my view this cultural contradiction has been the Iranians\u2019 biggest grief and dilemma who are struggling between these two opposing identities. The majority of Iranians do not identify, nor feel comfortable abiding to such oppressive Islamic codes and laws,\u201d she adds. In the black-and-white self-portrait Unveiling <\/em>(1993),<\/em> the artist is seen covered with verses from a poem by the late influential writer Forough Farrokhzad.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Mahsa Amini died in an Iranian hospital earlier this month after being detained by the regime\u2019s morality police for allegedly not complying with the country\u2019s hijab regulations, reported The Guardian<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Mahsa Amini\u2019s father has meanwhile accused the Iranian authorities of lying and says that her brother Kiarash was told that she had been beaten, according to the BBC<\/a>.<\/em>Iranian authorities say Amini was not mistreated but suffered “sudden heart failure”. Amini\u2019s death sparked mass protests in Tehran and cities including Yazd, Isfahan and Bushehr, which have continued for more than 12 days.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Meanwhile an open letter<\/a> published last month and signed by Iranian filmmakers and actors including Neshat, Ali Abbasi and Bahman Ghobadi, said: \u201cThe Iranian government has restricted internet usage and blocked access to social media platforms in order to further suppress people\u2019s voices. Last time such measures were implemented in 2019, the Iranian government murdered 1,500 people. Independent Iranian filmmakers are standing by these fearless Iranian women and men and are trying hard to capture and document history as it unfolds with limited resources.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Neshat has also created a collection of NFTs (non-fungible tokens) called Loss for Words<\/a> <\/em>commissioned by the Artwrld platform. In each piece, a pair of hands is shown slowly opening in a gesture of prayer, revealing a fragment of Iranian poetry written by various poets such as Farrokhzad, Sohrab Sepehri, Ahmad Shamlou and Nima Yushij.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cComing from a country where we have so much censorship and so much has to be hidden, and yet so much subversiveness is in the air\u2014this is what the Iranian people have learned to deal with: the absence of freedom of expression means finding ways of speaking without really opening your mouth,\u201d she tells W<\/em><\/a> magazine. Ten per cent of the NFT primary sales will go towards the non-profit organisation The Brooklyn Rail.<\/p>\n