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72 virgins
It is a common tradition in Russia and Asia for the
bride and groom to take wedding photographs in scenic places. In Kaliningrad
wedding parties usually
come to
Kant’s tomb to lay flowers and drink champagne. The performance of
Shahram Entekhabi focuses on this phenomenon. Assuming the role of a martyr,
the artist
visits Kant’s tomb with 72 virgins, who he will select with his "parents",
to accompany him in paradise as was promised to martyrs in some interpretations
of Islamic teachings. The women, of all shapes and sizes, are dressed in
black dresses, each with a white flower in hand. Besides evoking the idea
of the
black widow as the fanatical Muslim female martyr, the black dress refers
to the colour
of grief, common in European cultures. It also hints at the fact that the
marriage in paradise is only possible after the death of the martyr as well
as the death
of the virgins.
Similar to Shahram Entekhabi’s previous projects, the ‘72 Virgins’ photograph
and performance-video project features the artist Shahram Entekhabi deconstructing
the stereotype of ‘The Other’, migrant foreigners and those on
the periphery of society. In doing so, ‘72 Virgins’ highlights
the clichés
about Muslims by casting a critical view to notions of masculinity. It
also questions the ideals and realities of roles and promises as (mis)interpreted
and instrumentalized
by ideology, religious discourse and society to rally and recruit people
for political gain. Indeed, circles within contemporary Islamic debate
claim
that
this practice has no authenticity and is constantly contended. The project
also engages in a critical, albeit humorous, view of rites of passage like
marriage
which usually takes place between birth and death. However for martyrs,
their marriage (to 72 virgins) takes place after death.
Recalling Kant’s Categorial Imperative which holds that an act can be
moral if universally accepted by all, 72 Virgins offers a tongue-in-cheek view
of the
establishment of knowledge. Here, it might be possible for the Jewish/Christian
Western male to consider reaching 72 virgins in paradise as a form of religious
sacrifice and honour, due to one’s innate sexual desires and wishes
as well as the rich sexual imagery rooted in Judeo-Christian traditions.
(Damina
Khaira)
72 Virgins © Shahram Entekhabi 2009
Performance project, 2 video channel and photographic series
Coproduction: National Centre for Contemporary Arts, Kaliningrad and Moscow,
Russian Federation
Damina Khaira [LLB (International Islamic Univ Malaysia), MSc (Oxford) & PhD
candidate (Harvard)]