Words about M.

Kathrin Becker
Curator / Writer

The following text by Kathrin Becker reflects on Shahram Entekhabi’s artistic strategies in relation to migration, identity and the construction of stereotypes in Western societies. Focusing on a series of performative video works, Becker analyses how Entekhabi embodies different migrant figures in order to expose mechanisms of social projection, fear and cultural categorisation.

Words about M.

In the video i? (2004) by Shahram Entekhabi the character of the so-called migrant appears for the first time, becoming from that moment an important figure in his artistic work. The character, represented by Entekhabi himself, wears a cheap suit, a buttoned-up shirt and old-fashioned shoes. Through this conscious gesture Entekhabi adopts attributes that characterise the figure as belonging to the group of so-called “guest workers” who were recruited in Germany during the economic boom of the 1950s.

At the same time Entekhabi exaggerates this figure in a slapstick manner by freezing his face into an inexpressive mask, using special make-up and giving his movements a strange and unarticulated character through rolled-up trousers, reminiscent of silent film characters such as Buster Keaton.

In this way Entekhabi refers to the past while simultaneously placing the character in a contemporary situation. He opens the question of how the image of the guest worker in Western society has changed — or whether it remains trapped in a static stereotype. By performing this character himself, as an Iranian citizen living in Berlin for more than twenty years, he addresses the complex relationship between self-perception and external perception, between seeing and being seen.

In his later works Entekhabi splits the migrant character — almost like a multiple personality — into different figures, radicalising the original concept. By embodying clichés of migrants he holds up a mirror to Western society, reflecting prejudices related to chauvinism, terrorism and criminality that intensified particularly after 9/11.

At the same time the potential for aggression emerging from these characters is considerable. Mladen, for example, appears like the prototype of a Balkan street gangster, threatening passers-by while handling a clasp knife.

Islamic Star, another figure, moves through the city wearing a green Islamic star with the letter “M” stitched onto his shirt, recalling the enforced identification symbol of the “Jewish star” imposed on Jewish citizens during Nazi Germany.

By performing all these characters himself, Entekhabi redirects their aggressive potential onto his own body. The personification of social clichés produces a form of auto-aggression and self-mortification. In the work Mehmet, for example, a character resembling the stereotype of a Kurdish militant pours gasoline over himself at a tram stop and lights a match in an act suggesting self-immolation.

The work Miguel occupies a special position within this group of works. The character resembles a guerrilla fighter; his clothing suggests a paramilitary figure and his beard marks him as anti-Western. Staring directly into the camera while loading a revolver and smoking a cigar, Miguel bursts into uncontrollable laughter.

He pulls a hand grenade from his pocket, removes the pin and throws it to the ground, initiating the delay before detonation. Simultaneously he lights his cigar, drawing a parallel between lighting a bomb and lighting a cigar. The grenade never explodes.

While Miguel’s appearance evokes Middle Eastern revolutionary movements, his Spanish name and cigar also recall figures such as Che Guevara or Fidel Castro. Unlike earlier characters such as Mehmet, Mladen or Islamic Star, who act within urban street environments, Miguel is isolated in an interior space and maintains direct eye contact with the viewer.

The essential aspect here is that aggression toward oneself and aggression toward others appear almost equivalent. The work reverses the social process through which migrants are often perceived through prejudice. In Entekhabi’s staging the potential violence remains suspended — the grenade never explodes, the gasoline never ignites.

Through video Entekhabi reclaims an image that has been socially imposed upon him as a “migrant”. His exaggerated laughter becomes a communicative gesture directed at the viewer, provoking an emotional reaction while exposing the mechanisms of fear, projection and stereotype.