27 January, 2016
Shirin Aliabadi is an artist based in Tehran who explores the cracks that are created within socially oppressive systems by the emergence of small subcultures, specifically within Tehran.
This project, the 'Miss Hybrid Series' focuses on the fashion trends of young Iranian women, seeking to give a new meaning to their identity.
Though the women wear an Islamic veil, they adopt Western culture with blonde hair, light-coloured contact lenses and nose tape (inferring a fresh nose job).
Shirin says: "Miss Hybrid can be seen as a make-believe alternative beauty pageant believing that natural beauty is unfair, elitist and outdated, while artificial beauty sparked by an insatiable need to transform into someone else, cosmetic surgery included, can be regarded as a healthy exercise in cultural rebellion and global integration."
Her work can be found in public and private collections around the world, including The Farjam Foundation, Bristol Museum & Art Gallery and Collection of Deutsche Bank.
