Alexandra Yetley

This is a mixed-media piece that incorporates a box gifted to me from Iran and a collage of art activism pieces inside of the box. I call this piece “Pushing Pretty Boundaries,” because the box itself is traditional, neat, tidy, and put together but the contents are not. This box symbolizes the Iranian government’s efforts to appear composed and keep its people inside a traditional and conservative country through censorship. The collage of art activism pieces inside the box represents Iran’s underground art scene. It is the art that the regime attempts to keep hidden away, out of sight, and censored. The collage is spilling out of the sides of the box, representing the art that the Iranian government cannot keep hidden. This includes a variety of art, such as political cartoons, protests, dance, graffiti, and civil disobedience. The topics that the art covers vary from politics, elections, censorship, and more. Most of the art spilling out of the sides of the box is related to women’s rights and the Woman, Life, Freedom movement. I chose these pieces because the Woman, Life, Freedom movement is incredibly large in Iran and has gained international attention and support. From an outsider's point of view, the art associated with Woman, Life, Freedom is currently seen the most on the news and social media. The collage spilling out of the box also refers to the role of social media and other virtual spaces in spreading art pieces in and outside of Iran. Consequently, the regime faces challenges with censoring art and keeping it in the underground. In my art piece, the collage has spilled out so far that the lock on the box cannot be fastened. This is symbolic of how the Iranian government struggles to keep up the facade of being well-put-together and traditional because underground art tells a different narrative.