Taravat Talepasand's first solo exhibition here, titled “Westoxicated," explores issues of freedom, dignity and social justice with respect to women in Iran. Her work is a response to the history of these women and their position in the modern society of Iran. Using her art to provoke change and to question accepted conditions and values, Talepasand confronts the idea of a national identity. Appropriating images from Iran's currency and propaganda, her paintings and sculptures present women as empowered and sexualized. If the American audience takes these depictions in stride, in an Iranian context it amounts to an attempt to both shock and challenge accepted modes of gender representation.
