I’ve wrecked havoc amongst traditions

Overstepped boundaries like they’re hopscotch tiles

I’ve learnt to be a woman by myself;

to be a woman for and on my own.

Excerpt from a poem by Dita Toska

The exhibition held in Warehouse421 is a body of creative projects that explore the notion of “woman” in all her subjectivities, unburdens “woman” and reclaims womanhood. The exhibition features artists from West Asia, North Africa, South Asia and the diaspora. Each piece takes the viewer along an introspective journey on their personal definitions of what it is to be a woman.

The creative projects prompt public discourse on identity politics and the positionality of women in Muslim societies, sparking a conversation between the observants and the projects. Some address Islam and the woman, some expand on the tie between women and their culture, while others celebrate womanhood in bright colors, a variety attack the patriarchy and several transgress boundaries of gender identity at the intersection of other identities.

Photo Courtesy of Maha Al Remeithi.

One project that left me enthralled was Maitha Hamdan’s satirical take on the male gaze. A video featuring a veiled woman eating ice cream through her veil depicts the alienating gaze of the patriarchy that sexualizes everyday acts. The reenactment left me feeling a sense of discomfort; is this what it feels like to hold the male gaze? I reflect on this discomfort now, and realize that it stems from the anxiety of being weighed down and watched by the gaze of others, of being perceived and feeling helpless by the lack of agency to do anything about it.

Photo Courtesy of Maha Al Remeithi.

“From the moment this gaze exists, I am already something other, in that I feel myself becoming an object for the gaze of others. But in this position, which is a reciprocal one, others also know that I am an object who knows himself to be seen,” as Lacan argues.

Women outside of western contexts are subject to multiple gazes; the male gaze, the western orientalist gaze and society’s gaze and oftentimes begin to interiorize these. The male gaze perpetuates female subordination, fetishization and objectification. The orientalist gaze mystifies and romanticises the woman, especially the Muslim woman, as a victim of tradition, reinforcing a western savior complex to ‘save’ them. Society’s gaze shackles women to social constructs and the gender binary, keeping in check the boundaries set by the patriarchy. A constant tension, between wanting to stand up to the gaze but also live in a society dictated by the expectations and terms set by those watching her, envelops the woman. As we gaze upon the woman, we do not realize the weight that our gaze carries. The artists featured in this exhibition attempt to subvert this gaze by reclaiming and demystifying women’s own narratives.

Another piece that drew me was the photograph by Suleika Mueller of a figure cloaked in fabric blended into the background which explored the abdication of physicality, relinquishing shame, fetishisation and sexualisation in society, as the abstract supporting it explained. The figure in the photograph echoes a sense of shame and a wish to blend into the background to the extent of invisibility, not subject to anyone’s gaze. It is a very painful image to behold; the emotion it evokes is shared by many women who were taught that their flesh is a sin, and the cloth that covers them is their protection.

Photo Courtesy of Maha Al Remeithi.

The discussion that this photograph stirs up is one about the relationship between women and their bodies. Society sexualizes women and in the same breath absolves harassers from blame and accountability by placing it squarely on the woman and what she wears. This section of the exhibition perfectly combines different projects in a way that puts them in conversation with one another.

The piece by Amina Yahya, unlike Mueller’s, interrogates the male gaze through a collage of women of diverse ages and clothing styles. The painting is a response to the sexual assault cases in Egypt, where modest and immodest clothing is used to justify sexual assault. It’s another artwork that leaves the viewer feeling uneasy.

Photo Courtesy of Maha Al Remeithi.

In a table set for the woman and the patriarchy, Rania Jishi’s ceramics speak volumes. The menu offers rage for starters; frustration, best served cold; and the chef’s special, disappointment. Phrases like “enough” and “shut your mouth” adorn the plates, echoing the sentiment of the woman towards the patriarchy. Needless to say, the woman ate.

Photo Courtesy of Maha Al Remeithi.

Across a dark hallway, light seeps from the end where a marble fountain is placed. Shamiran Istifan’s piece of art is a commentary on the objectification and exoticising of the woman’s body. Shamiran melts sugar wax on silk pillows as a metaphor for the objectification of women. The scales pattern is inspired by Shah-Maran, a half-woman half-serpent mythical creature who is a symbol of protection. The overlapping dripping wax and scales represent the dismantling of gender binaries.

Photo Courtesy of Maha Al Remeithi.

The exhibition is running until Jan. 23, 2022 at Warehouse421. Entry is free of charge. This was merely a glimpse into As We Gaze Upon Her, where a variety of other creative projects give nuance to pressing themes surrounding the notion of womanhood.