Shirin Neshat. Women Without Men

Women Without Men is renowned visual artist Shirin Neshat's feature-film debut. Its exquisitely crafted view of the artist's native Iran during its tumultuous British and American-backed coup d'état in 1953 won Neshat the Silver Lion at the 2009 Venice International Film Festival. Adapted from the novel by Iranian author Shahrnush Parsipur, the film draws together the initially separate stories of five female characters during those traumatic days. With a camera that floats sedately through the lives of the women and the countryside of Iran, Neshat explores the political and psychological dimensions of her characters as they converge in a metaphorical orchard. This volume unites stills from the series of five video installations that originated the film with photographs and texts by critic Eleanor Heartney, Parsipur and the artist.