IKMAS SEMINAR SERIES 19/14
Visual Representation of Iranian Cultural Identity in the West
DR. SANAZ FOTOUHI
UNIVERSITY OF NEW SOUTH WALES, AUSTRALIA
22/09/14 (MONDAY)
14:30-16:00
IKMAS SEMINAR ROOM,
UNIVERSITI KEBANGSAAN MALAYSIA
Abstract
Much of the initial attraction of Iranian culture in the West comes from an initial visual encounter. Whether in books, or movies, or festivals, these initial visual encounters are what attract Western viewers, readers, and festival-goers to engage further. The visual elements to engage Western audiences are, however, designed in line with a series of cultural expectations, and with signifiers that speak to a Western audience. This paper considers some of these visual encounters in relation to the local and global images and visual elements of book covers, movie posters, and festival posters. It differentiates between these representations in their local setting, ie. in Iran, and global, ie. in the West. It examines how these images and visual elements are designed to speak and attract audiences according to where the work is being presented. This paper draws on what Genette Gerard calls ‘Paratexts’ as elements in and around a text to examine specifically how these images and visuals differ according to the audience and their expectations.
Biographical Sketch
Sanaz Fotouhi earned her PhD in English Literature from the University of New South Wales under the supervision of Professor Bill Ashcroft and Dr. Michelle Langford, where she examined diasporic Iranian literature in English in the last thirty years. Her book on this topic ‘The Literature of the Iranian Diaspora: Meaning and Identity Since the Islamic Revolution’ will be out with IB Tauris in early 2015.Sanaz is also the Managing Director of the Persian International Film Festival in Sydney, and a film producer. The latest film she co-produced ‘Love Marriage in Kabul’ set in Afghanistan and directed by Amin Palangi, has received great international success. Currently, she is working on a creative non-fiction piece where she explores her experiences as a filmmaker in Afghanistan.