GENDERS. HEGEMONY AND DISSENT
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The genre, questioned from two very different realities but with a unique artistic and documentary look, that of the photographer Neus Solà, as a guiding thread. Poupées talks about patriarchal hegemony in the Roma community and a social and identity-building associated with women’s control. Nirvan allows us to approach the issue of gender from the legitimate dissent of the Hindu religion. Two exhibitions that can be seen in the cloister of Sant Francesc in the framework of the Àlbum 2024 festival.
The images of Poupées breathe a wild beauty. It was a strange and original freedom. The spontaneity and autonomy of the protagonists challenge the viewer, who predicts the restrictions they will have to assume when reaching adolescence.
Neus Solà immerses us in the fleeting childhood of the gypsy girls of Le Cité de Perpignan, moving away from stereotypes. His is a bittersweet account of the transition to maturity. A path marked by early hypersexualization and the patriarchal tradition of the Romani code.
The double interpretation of the title, Poupées (nina in French), is the key to reading a work that shows two sides of the same reality: on the one hand, the gypsy female ideal based on innocence and purity and, on the other, the hypersexualization and objectification of women at very early ages.
The exhibition is complemented by images from the Nirvan project, a photographic account of hijras, male or intersex people recognized as a third gender by Hinduism. The artist brings us closer to the sacred imaginary of this community, its reality and its role in society.
Neus Solà Neus Solà (1984) is a documentary photographer and cultural manager born and based in Barcelona. He has coordinated the last two editions of the Festival Transfronter de Fotografia i Arts Visuals FotoLimo (Portbou-Cerbère). Currently, he combines his artistic work, working as a freelancer in the management and communication of various cultural and social projects.
His photographic projects explore the human condition and investigate issues such as identity, gender and territory from an anthropological perspective. With this in mind, the author has documented issues about the Balkans’ memory, California’s alternative farms, the women of the Dalit caste or the sacred status of India’s hijra (transgender) community, among others.
His project “Poupées” has won several awards such as the MDF Award for Best Documentary Photography 2019, the Nuevos Talentos de Gijón Award 2016 and the public prize at the ManifestO Festival 2017 (Toulouse). It has also been one of nine projects nominated for the Prix HSBC pour la Photographie 2019 and has been a finalist for the International Women Photographers Award IWPA.
His images have been exhibited in several countries such as Spain, France, Sweden, Germany, United Arab Emirates, India, Pakistan and Mexico among others.
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