In Shadi Ghadirian’s series West by East she employs fashion mores to explore the theme of woman as object. In these portraits of women in Western dress, the artist uses broad black hatching to cover the exposed parts of the body, reminding us of the strictly enforced rules prohibiting women from exposing certain parts of their bodies, in many cases, the parts most often seen in the pages of fashion magazines or on television.

Shadi Ghadirian was born in 1974 in Tehran, where she currently lives. In addition to producing her own artwork as a professional photographer, Ghadirian also works at the Museum of Photography in Tehran. She has exhibited her works in prestigious venues worldwide, has had her photographs published in print articles for the New York Times, the Daily Telegraph, the BBC and more, and has numerous pieces in permanent collections including the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.