The First Bra Boutique, an installation work in Makan, Amman, Jordan, May, 2008
with a production award from the Culture Resource, Cairo, Egypt and support from Makan.
A part of the installation took part in a group show in Cairo, organised by the Culture Resource as part of the Spring Festival in May, 2010.
http://www.mawred.org/en/events/2010-events/162
This project started from a shared experience (realised over conversations) in getting the first bra from a particular lingerie boutique in Amman in the period from say 1975-1985. I was ten and the woman was shameless, with long red nails and a diamond ring she strapped me and I was never comfortable again.
The installation included a collection of bra stories from different women printed in a small book with illustrations and commentaries by the artist, a collection of used bras and memorabilia. It turns out everyone has a story to tell about a bra. The bra transforms into a symbol about sexuality, coming of age, ageing, public/private space, sickness, beauty, gender and more and above all that this piece of torture (unless you do not really need it) is used by women across the board, exhibited on shop windows and can be as expensive as hell, yet there is a lot of whispering around it, it is still a secret.
For more, check http://www.makanhouse.net/content/first-bra-boutiqueinstallation.
bibliography
http://www.jo.jo/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=659:bold-and-brassiere&catid=77:culture&Itemid=176
http://www.al-akhbar.com/ar/node/74557
http://www.360east.com/?p=977
http://www.jocr8.com/interview/5
http://rafique-n.blogspot.com/2008/05/my-days-as-anti-feminist-are-totally.html
