Shabnam Rahimzadeh

Bukan — The “Afrat” painting exhibition aims to introduce and preserve the visual arts and cultural heritage of the city of Bukan. It featured artworks with folkloric themes, nature, and traditional clothing, offering an opportunity for local cultural and artistic exchange.

The city of Bukan, affiliated with Urmia, hosted the second edition of the “Afrat” painting exhibition, which seeks to highlight Kurdish culture and identity and shed light on the social issues of Kurdish society through realistic visual artworks. The exhibition displayed 68 highly realistic paintings created by 40 artists.

An Art Exhibition Highlighting Kurdish Women’s Identity

The exhibition witnessed a remarkable presence of female participants, each striving to depict the social and cultural narratives of Kurdish society through paintings rich in realism and meticulous attention to detail. The exhibition also included works by prominent Kurdish artists, portraits of adorned faces, and a distinctive display of traditional clothing, jewelry, and tattoos that reflect the uniqueness and cultural identity of Kurdish women.

The exhibition was held under the supervision of Mina Karimi, director of the “Afrat” School of Painting, with the displayed works being the result of students’ activities within this educational program. Through their paintings, participants sought to address their social and cultural concerns, using art as a means to express their vision and identity.

Participants explained that adopting a hyperrealistic style allows for more precise depictions of faces, emotions, and social situations, giving the audience an opportunity to engage with deeper layers of the issues presented. Through this approach, the “Afrat” exhibition has become a tangible space for rereading identity, history, and social issues within Kurdish society, in line with its core goal of highlighting Kurdish culture and reinterpreting it through visual arts.

The “Afrat” painting exhibition, held in Bukan, was warmly received by the city’s residents, and the group plans to showcase their works in other cities across Eastern Kurdistan.