{"id":57493,"date":"2021-03-20T08:21:52","date_gmt":"2021-03-20T14:21:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/?p=57493"},"modified":"2023-11-13T13:51:41","modified_gmt":"2023-11-13T19:51:41","slug":"fazilat-soukhakian","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/fazilat-soukhakian\/","title":{"rendered":"Fazilat Soukhakian"},"content":{"rendered":"
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“Riley and Brock,” from Queer in Utah<\/p><\/div>\n

An embracing couple is captured in front of a narrowing, leaf-covered path. Slightly off-center in the composition, we see one figure\u2019s back, while the other figure is facing us, gazing confidently in our direction, one arm cradling the lower back of her partner, while the other hand just above showcases outstretched fingers, one prominently displaying a dark wedding band. This captivating work is a standout in artist Fazilat Soukhakian\u2019s ongoing photographic series Queer in Utah<\/i>, which stages powerful and intimate portraits of same-sex couples.<\/h4>\n

Indeed, the art of Soukhakian, a celebrated photographer and scholar, examines issues of gender and national identity through work that directly confronts some of the most significant social and political issues of our time. Soukhakian\u2019s spirit of activism is a constant in her works, often relishing in the perspectives of those disregarded or under-valued by their nations, societies or religions.<\/h4>\n
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Fazilat Soukhakian, photo by Andrew Mcallister<\/p><\/div>\n

Soukhakian began her career as one of Iran\u2019s premiere female photojournalists, known for her unflinching accounts of gender segregation and discrimination in a heavily patriarchal society. At play in her work is what she describes as a \u201ca combination of a theoretical and historical understanding of space combined with the creation of human-interest stories.\u201d<\/h4>\n

The artist credits her home nation as an indelible influence on her artistic outlook. \u201cLiving in that part of the world, where you have to constantly struggle with a lot of social and cultural discrimination, you get used to looking at your life as a battleground,\u201d she says.<\/h4>\n

In addition to her practice, Soukhakian has served as assistant professor of photography and photography area coordinator at Utah State University since 2015. Prior to moving to Utah, she received her M.F.A.\u00a0 <\/span>(2013) and Ph.D. (2018, in architectural history and visual studies) from the University of Cincinnati. Before moving to the United States in 2011, she received a Bachelor of Fine Arts (photography) in her native Iran, at Tehran University. Along the way, Soukhakian has exhibited her work internationally and garnered many prizes for her compelling and timely photographs, which reveal layers of meaning beyond their surfaces, inviting a form of empathy and curiosity about their subjects that leaves an unmistakable impression.<\/h4>\n

Over the past few years, Soukhakian has exhibited work in Budapest, Florida, San Francisco, Portland, and Ohio. Her work has also made waves in local exhibitions, including Demarcation<\/i> (traveling exhibition curated by Granary Arts, 2019) and Women to the Front: Perspectives on Equity, Gender, and Activism<\/i> (curated by Nancy Rivera and this author for the Rio Gallery, 2020). Her work resides in the collections of the State of Utah Alice Merrill Horne Collection, the Rare Books Collection at the J. Willard Marriot Library (University of Utah), the Snow College Karen H. Huntsman Library Special Collections, the Nora Eccles Harrison Museum of Art at Utah State University, the Utah Museum of Fine Arts, and Savannah College of Art and Design.<\/h4>\n
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“Forbidden Hair,” 2016<\/p><\/div>\n

A remarkable standout in Granary Arts\u2019 Demarcation <\/i>\u2014 an ambitious survey of contemporary photography in Utah as a dual exhibition and publication \u2014 is Soukhakian’s “Forbidden Hair,” 2016, which uses a biographical moment from the artist\u2019s childhood to make a larger statement about gendered beauty standards in traditional Muslim societies. Here, Soukhakian has photographed human hair pinned to a wall with a nail. The upwardly cascading locks crescendo in a triangular fashion before teetering out at near the nail focal point, made even more dramatic when placed atop a bright, white background. The photograph is a response to a moment in Soukhakian\u2019s childhood when a teacher chastised her for entering a public space without her head covering, voicing in front of the class that Soukhakian would be hung in hell by her hair.<\/h4>\n

In August 2020, Soukhakian debuted An<\/em> Anonymous Battle<\/i>, a solo exhibition at Snow College\u2019s Karen H. Huntsman Library, which will be on view until June of 2021. This exhibition features a number of striking photographs of a female figure, clad in a traditional Islamic burka, engaging in modern tasks such as sitting on a motorcycle, reclining with two dogs, and skateboarding. Soukhakian gained her inspiration for this series from a fascinating schism currently underway in many Islamic societies between traditional gender roles and rapid modernization.<\/h4>\n

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As the show\u2019s press release describes it, \u201ca younger generation of mostly educated women, newly aware of their rights and powers gifted to them through a glance into modernity, has catalyzed a growing struggle between traditional and contemporary gender roles and identity.\u201d<\/h4>\n

2020\u2019s Women to the Front<\/i> featured three photographs from Soukhakian\u2019s Queer in Utah Series<\/i>, including the work noted at the outset. The exhibition sought to commemorate local female artists whose work comments on the legacy of the suffrage movement, which celebrated its centennial in 2020.<\/h4>\n

Beginning in 2019, Soukhakian set out with a very simple premise: to document the lives of same-sex couples living in notoriously conservative Utah.<\/h4>\n

\u201cThis series is about my shock that in the 21st<\/sup> century in America, there are places where communities are being discriminated against because of their sexuality,\u201d she says. The artist admits that the scope of American discrimination took her by surprise upon moving to Utah in 2015.<\/h4>\n

\u201cThis was something I was really na\u00efve about when I moved to America. I know I lived in Iran, which [is known for] a lot of discrimination and social issues, but my idea as a young 26-year-old just out of college is that I\u2019m going to America to feel complete freedom, to feel like there is no discrimination here. I was shocked when I arrived in Utah, [and] immediately I was exposed to the idea that people were losing their jobs because of their sexuality. I was also exposed to young people that were thinking of suicide because they grew up in this faith that they have a lot of respect for but felt that they no longer had a place [within it].\u201d<\/h4>\n

Though Soukhakian admits that the series is not meant to be overtly political, the individual works make an undoubtedly pointed statement about their subjects. Namely, the portraits of couples in a variety of settings normalizes such relationships and effectuate the ordinary and touching nature of their unions. The battle for many LGBTQ activists has been to achieve just that \u2014 the normalization of so-called \u201cnontraditional\u201d families.<\/h4>\n

What unites the works in this series is the intimacy of the shared connection, a visually tangible language of love captured by two people fully engaged with one another. And while Soukhakian captures candid scenes of great warmth, the works gain their enigmatic power from the fact that in many of the photographs, at least one figure gazes directly at the viewer, arresting us with an unavoidable gaze as if to compel us to acknowledge their presence. This is significant, for the marginalized often fight for the very right to exist as ordinary and as human and not \u201cother.\u201d This fight is notable in a state in which the LGBTQ community and the LDS Church have an embattled history.<\/h4>\n

Though the battle for full acceptance rages on, Soukhakian\u2019s work on this series has given her reason to be hopeful. \u201cI think the LGBTQ community are very brave, especially this new generation who are even bolder than the previous generation. I think that even five years from now, things will change even more and that the community will be even more accepting.\u201d<\/h4>\n

Soukhakian\u2019s other ongoing photographic series is called Defiance<\/i>, an international project which highlights innovators whose actions challenge oppressive or antiquated belief systems in their native countries. \u201cI was very interested in looking at communities that think outside of the box, without [whom] we would never see any real change,\u201d she says.<\/h4>\n

She recalls meeting and photographing a woman in Japan who teaches seminars on female sexuality and empowerment, action which resulted in her arrest. \u201cIt\u2019s interesting how from one culture to another, there are different standards. An act that would be criminal in one setting makes someone a hero in another. These brave people want to bring changes but in a very different and unique way,\u201d Soukhakian says.<\/h4>\n
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From the Defiance series<\/p><\/div>\n

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For Soukhakian, the ultimate goal of Defiance<\/i> is about \u201cbringing all these stories together in one place to [create] a sense of empowerment to every community.\u201d<\/h4>\n

Soukhakian says she hopes to bring this sense of empowerment to her students too. She sees teaching as a vital way to encourage her students to see their own potential, including championing activism within their own lives. \u201cWhen I moved to America, my assumption was there shouldn\u2019t be many problems here,\u201d she says. \u201cThere is a lot of talk here about freedom, particularly political freedom and the right to do whatever you choose, but I quickly realized this isn\u2019t entirely true.\u201d<\/h4>\n

It\u2019s this realization that compelled Soukhakian to consider how individual struggle can serve as an inspiration for one\u2019s creative process. \u201cEverybody in their own life has some sort of huge struggle to go through. I tell my students constantly that this is what life is about. You don\u2019t have to live in Syria to go through a war zone. I encourage them to think about it and that it’s OK to question it. As an educator, our job is to push them. This all starts with your own life,\u201d she says.<\/h4>\n
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From the Defiance series<\/p><\/div>\n

Like most of us, the world paused in 2020 for Soukhakian, as she modified her international art projects and teaching to the shelter-in-place necessities of COVID-19. \u201cFor my own creative work, it\u2019s been very challenging to do projects relating to human stories. All of my work relates to humans \u2014 [which involved] contacting them, flying to their country, grabbing coffee, setting up the lighting and taking photographs and that just hasn\u2019t been possible.\u201d<\/h4>\n

\u201cFor a while I wanted to be respectful. I didn\u2019t know if people were comfortable, so for 5 months, I stopped producing. For Queer in Utah<\/i>, I was able to continue working with people but for Defiance<\/i>, that project [has] completely shut down. I had to cancel travel to Prague and Ireland and had plans to photograph in the Middle East and all those [plans] are shut down for now,\u201d she says.<\/h4>\n

Though the COVID-19 pandemic proved devastating to the arts in many respects \u2014 including closures of galleries and museums and widespread economic hardships \u2014 for many, it was also a time to re-focus and re-prioritize one\u2019s own craft. Despite all the uncertainty, Soukhakian says she appreciates these opportunities for reflection. \u201cIt was good timing to review my project\u2019s ideas. I\u2019ve had time to read more and a lot of museum shows are online right now, as well as a lot of workshops that would normally take place in New York City or L.A., I can attend. It makes me feel like I\u2019m part of something I wouldn\u2019t have access to before,\u201d she says.<\/h4>\n

This re-focusing was also imperative when it came to her teaching philosophy, as her photography students were among the millions affected by a sudden adjustment to their everyday routine. Mid-way through the Spring 2020 semester, she and other faculty across the state were forced to switch to remote learning. \u201cIt\u2019s been a challenging balance with teaching and my workload. The workload is much more for online courses,\u201d she says. This is particularly difficult to navigate with studio-based courses less adaptable to online learning.<\/h4>\n

Despite these difficulties, the \u201cstudents adjusted very well, and I learned a lot from my classes.\u201d Some efficient practices may even survive a post-pandemic classroom. \u201cInterestingly, my students taught me that we do not need to waste a lot of materials.\u201d In her photography courses, students were traditionally required to produce prints for the class critiques. Now that these critiques have been taking place on Zoom, Soukhakian realizes it is not environmentally friendly to print out each version of a work in progress and may, in the future, require such prints only for the final works. \u201cIt makes sense that we can talk about a student\u2019s work in progress over Zoom without having to make prints for each stage,\u201d she says.<\/h4>\n

Ultimately, the artist\u2019s own struggle to balance the stresses of the pandemic gave her empathy for what her students encountered. \u201cWe need to be understanding to their situation and understand it’s not an easy time to produce or read or write. They\u2019re not at their best energy at this point and it\u2019s not their fault,\u201d she says.<\/h4>\n

Now, as Soukhakian looks ahead to a post-pandemic world, she is eager to begin traveling again to commence work on the Defiance<\/i> series. Until then, we are fortunate to have avenues through which to enjoy her work, including online exhibitions and in-person viewing at Snow College. Utah is fortunate to have Soukhakian\u2019s remarkable perspective \u2014 one marked by international notions of perseverance and activism, notions which 2020 brought into renewed focus.<\/h4>\n

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Anonymous Battle, <\/i>Snow College\u2019s Karen H. Huntsman Library, Ephraim, through June 4, 2021. You can find the virtual exhibition for Women to the Front: Perspectives on Equality, Gender and Activism<\/em> here.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

An embracing couple is captured in front of a narrowing, leaf-covered path. Slightly off-center in the composition, we see one figure\u2019s back, while the other figure is facing us, gazing confidently in our direction, one arm cradling the lower back of her partner, while the other hand just […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1534,"featured_media":57899,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_piecal_is_event":false,"_piecal_start_date":"","_piecal_end_date":"","_piecal_is_allday":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[17,14],"tags":[3942],"class_list":["post-57493","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-artist_profiles","category-visual_arts","tag-fazilat-soukhakian"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/Screen-Shot-2021-03-29-at-7.32.05-AM.png","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-05-19 02:53:42","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57493","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1534"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=57493"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57493\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":70640,"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57493\/revisions\/70640"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/57899"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=57493"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=57493"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=57493"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}