Boushra Almutawakel

Boushra Almutawakel
Born1969
Sana'a, Yemen
NationalityYemeni
Alma materAmerican University
OccupationPhotographer
Organization(s)Al-Halaqa, Rawiya

Boushra Y. Almutawakel[1] (Arabic: بشارة المتوكل; born 1969)[2] is a Yemeni photographer.[3] Her work concerns the international perception of Arabs and Muslims and focuses in particular on the international perception of issues of gender and representations of Muslim/Arab women and their clothing.[4][5][6]

Early and personal life

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Almutawakel was born in 1969 in Sana'a, Yemen.[7] After studying at American University in Washington, D.C., she returned to Yemen in 1994, where she became one of the country's first female professional photographers.[8]

She moved from Sana’a to France in August 2013 with her husband and their four daughters.[9]

Work and career

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In 1996, she became a founder member of Al-Halaqa, an organisation that provided a space for art to be displayed and discussed.[10]

In 1999, aside from developing her photographic work and being an educational adviser, Boushra Almutawakel was honoured as the first Yemeni female photographer by the Empirical Research and Women's Studies Centre at Sana'a University.[11]

Almutawakel was living in the United States at the time of the September 11 attacks, which led her to focus on perceptions, both positive and negative, of Arabs and Muslims. She engaged specifically with the Egyptian writer Nawal El Saadawi's remark that "women who wore the hijab or niqab were the same as women who wore makeup in the sense that they all hid their true identities", and sought to interpret Saadawi's ideas through photography. Her "Mother, Daughter, Doll" (2010) series portrays a progression from Western clothing to the hijab and explores perceptions of women in particular. It includes photographs of "Fulla" dolls, a toy similar to Barbie dolls marketed to Muslim children. Almutawakel's work also examines the ways Yemeni women have covered their bodies historically and in the present.[4] Discussing her focus on clothing and the niqab, Almutawakel has said "I want to be careful not to fuel the stereotypical, widespread negative images most commonly portrayed about the hijab/veil in the Western media. Especially the notion that most, or all women who wear the hijab/veil, are weak, oppressed, ignorant, and backwards".[5] Another project depicts women dressed in men's traditional clothing; Almutawakel explains "men's traditional clothing is very similar to women's clothing—long, loose, modest and often with a head-covering. The focus in Western media is always on the way women are dressed so I wanted to challenge this idea."[6]

As of 2014, Almutawakel was a member of Rawiya.[8] In 2018, she was listed as one of BBC's 100 Women.[12]

She has worked as a photographer for the British Council, CARE, the Royal Netherlands Embassy, the French Cultural Centre, and the United Nations; and also worked for the Yemeni embassy in Washington, D.C. as a consultant on cultural affairs and for the Yemeni Ministry of Human Rights, focusing on women's issues.[1][13]

References

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  1. ^ a b "The hijab/veil series - Boushra Almutawakel, Yemen". Muslima - Muslim Women's Art and Voices. International Museum of Women. Archived from the original on 25 October 2021. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
  2. ^ "Boushra Almutawakel, Strata, 2008". School of Oriental and African Studies. University of London. 2008. Archived from the original on 1 September 2018. Retrieved 18 June 2012.
  3. ^ Espinosa, Ángeles (4 January 2012). "La revolución ha inspirado a artistas. A mí me bloquea". El País (in Spanish). Retrieved 18 June 2012.
  4. ^ a b Alviso-Marino, Anahi (October 2010). "Boushra Almutawakel". Nafas Art Magazine. Archived from the original on 19 June 2012. Retrieved 18 June 2012.
  5. ^ a b Denis, Daphnee (29 November 2012). "Unveiling an Arab Woman's Experience With a Headscarf". Slate. Archived from the original on 24 May 2022. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
  6. ^ a b "Challenging the norm". The Economist. 16 August 2012. Archived from the original on 8 September 2012. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
  7. ^ Haight, Emily (19 April 2016). "She Who Tells a Story: Boushra Almutawakel". National Museum of Women in the Arts. Archived from the original on 27 November 2021. Retrieved 16 May 2020.
  8. ^ a b Estrin, James (19 June 2014). "Pulling Back the Veil, or Keeping It On". The New York Times. Retrieved 16 May 2020.
  9. ^ "About Boushra Almutawakel". Retrieved 13 February 2020.
  10. ^ Abushakra, Nasrine (12 February 2015). "Boushra Almutawakel: Celebrated Yemeni Artist On The Power of Art". Haute Living. Archived from the original on 16 October 2021. Retrieved 19 February 2019.
  11. ^ "Artists - Boushra Almutawakel". British Council − Visual Arts. Archived from the original on 13 September 2021. Retrieved 19 February 2019.
  12. ^ "BBC 100 Women 2018: Who is on the list?". BBC News. 19 November 2018. Archived from the original on 18 October 2022. Retrieved 21 November 2018.
  13. ^ Malik, Khadijah (9 January 2017). "Boushra Almutawakel: An Eye for Beneath and Beyond". Culture Trip. Archived from the original on 13 September 2021. Retrieved 19 February 2019.
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