The Stream

Is a woman’s place behind the lens?

Female photographers challenge viewers to look beyond an image.

What the lens of a photographer is able to catch, the layman might simply be missing. And what the lens of a female photographer can capture may be filled with lessons of culture and gender, erasing stereotypes imprinted by others. There might be a lot more to what you see than you’re even aware.

“She Who Tells a Story” is an exhibition of women photographers from the Arab world and Iran. Borrowed from the Arabic rawiya, meaning female storyteller, the artists are part of a collective from Jordan, Lebanon, Jerusalem, Palestine, Dubai and Egypt. The aim of the collective is to push viewers’ preconceived notions about women in the Arab world to the side, and invite them to see issues their subconscious bias might be blinding them to.

On Tuesday at 19:30 GMT, we’ll speak to artists from the collective about their work, the obstacles they face, and why they capture what they do. Join in the conversation and share your own photography and stories with #StreamPhotoAlbum. 

On today’s episode, we speak to: 

Myriam Abdelaziz @MyriamAbdelaziz
Egyptian-French photographer
myriamabdelaziz.com

Laura Boushnak @LauraBoushnak
Independent photographer
lauraboushnak.com

Tanya Habjouqa @thabjouqa
Jordanian-American photographer
tanyahabjouqa.com

What do you think? What specific challenges do women photographers face? Leave your views in the comment section below.