By Ellaha Rasa
The black and white image of a girl’s face illuminates the canvas. Her eyes are filled with tears. Behind her, a family goes about their daily business, seemingly oblivious to her sorrow.
“Dream of an Afghan Girl” is the latest painting of 20-year-old artist Yasra.
It is a work of protest; against the Taliban’s repression of women and girls but also against families who give in to the Taliban and ignore what is happening to their daughters.
Yasra tells Rukhshana Media that the painting depicts the pain and suffering of millions of students, both female and male. She is one of them.
photo: submitted to Rukhshana media.
Her study of Fine Art at Herat University was cut short by a Taliban decree banning women from higher education. But that has not stopped her fighting to pursue her career.
She has been practicing the art of gilding on glass, pottery, and paper for a year. Her goal is to keep the light of art burning. “I don’t have a special income from my works, because the economic situation of the people is very bad,” she says. “We cannot participate in exhibitions like during the previous regime, and the Taliban do not allow us to exhibit our artworks.”
The Taliban have imposed many restrictions on the field of art as well as other fields. Last year, they announced that it was forbidden for girls to choose art at university. It even forbids the depiction of human faces. According to Yasra, the main income for artists has been from painting portraits.
“It has become very difficult for us to transfer the paintings and we transfer the portrait paintings secretly so that no one will find out and it will not create a problem for us.”
– Shakila*,22, was another student of Herat University’s fine arts department. She has been working in an art gallery for six months, earning 6.000 Afghanis (US$70) per month. It’s the only income for her family of seven.
“I am trying to support my family through my art, but for now our work is secret and I always have this fear in my heart that the Taliban will find out and I or my work will be in trouble,” she says.
photo: submitted to Rukhshana media.
Shakila says the Taliban’s restrictions have made her unable to display her works for sale. “They banned art, and if the works of women artists have no way to be displayed and sold,” she says. “Then with the continuation of this situation, women will not have a bright future in the field of art.”
Shakila has a clear message to the girls in Afghanistan in her painting titled “Tomorrow’s hope”, that they must fight against the restrictions of the Taliban in the hope of victory. “Women and girls are in absolute darkness after being denied the right to study and work,” she says. “As hard as the struggle is, they must not give up, they must fight for their rights.”
The light of art in Herati women’s hands
In Herat’s Arbabzada Gallery, four girls are busy decorating clay pots. They don’t give a thought to Taliban restrictions as they concentrate on creating small, exquisite patterns to please customers.
Dozens of girls have trained in painting, miniature, and gilding courses at the gallery. All prefer being busy here to being stuck at home, unable to go to school, university or language training centres.
Arbabzada was established about 20 years ago with an investment of one million Afghanis, equal to about US$11,500. Students have taken its training courses in graphics, painting, miniatures, gilding and hand printing on clothes, wood, glass, rugs and silk.
Female students spend three days a week in the gallery and spend the rest of the week at home.
Poverty and unemployment have reached their highest level under the rule of the Taliban and many families are not able to pay the education costs of their daughters, so the gallery offers some of the courses for free.
Maria Samar Arbabzada has been in charge of the gallery’s girls’ section for two years. At a time when women and girls in Afghanistan are going through the most difficult moments of their lives, she tries not to extinguish this light of art for girls.
She tells Rukhshana Media that the age group of the students of this gallery is between 15 and 45 years old, which includes school students above the sixth grade, university students deprived of education and housewives.
Mrs. Arbabzada thinks art is an effective way for girls to escape isolation at home. As well as keeping them busy, it can bring income for their families.
“The source of income of this gallery is obtained only from the sale of artists’ works,” she says. The gallery supplies their raw materials like paint and brushes and takes 50 per cent commission.
Karim Arbabzada is the owner of Arbabzadea gallery. “Artists should not stop working based on limitations,” he advises. “And try to work in handicrafts and arts such as painting and miniature on pottery, ceramics, glass and rugs.”
Mr. Karim says there is consumer demand for kilims and rugs with verses of the Qur’an sewn on with bold and prominent lines.
In the 1990s, the Taliban imposed severe restrictions on the activities of painters and miniaturists, causing many painters and miniaturists to migrate from the country.
The US invasion in 2001 opened a new chapter for the growth of art in Afghanistan, especially for women. For two decades, women were able to shine. They took part in exhibitions and earned money selling their works.
photo: submitted to Rukhshana media.
But history repeated itself in August 2021, when the Taliban took over Afghanistan and condemned the work being done. Many artists left the country.
Herat, with its rich cultural and artistic background, was the leader in painting and miniatures. Since the Taliban took over, the art market has declined.
However, Arbabzadea gallery has still managed to send its artworks to 15 exhibitions inside Afghanistan and abroad. Most recently, it took part in the Abu Hanifa exhibition in Kabul, the biggest in the country.
Mrs. Akbarzada says more than fifty works such as paintings and miniatures have been sold since April.
Dozens of professors from Herat University left Afghanistan after the Taliban took over. Nazir Rahgozar taught in the Faculty of Fine Arts but moved to France. He sees the prospects for art under the Taliban as bleak.
But he still urges students and artists to continue creating to try to keep art alive.
He recognizes the challenges. The ban on girls studying past sixth grade, the lack of awareness most families have about art and the dire economic situation have reduced interest in working in the art sector to its lowest level.
“Families do not have much awareness of art, though they should at least help by opposing the Taliban restrictions,” he says. “But on the other hand, people can’t afford to think about art or buy raw materials at exhorbitant prices.”
To help promote art, Rahgozar has set up Herat Art School in Italy. The Mahor Association in France and has organized 17 exhibitions, seminars, art workshops, and concerts in almost two years.
“Artists can use their art to be an opposition,” he adds. “They try to create artworks against the conflicts, troubles and confrontation with very strict religious rituals.”
