Nastaran Farjadpezeshk speaks to Nilofer Khan about her childlike curiosity, and her fondness for fleeting, everyday moments.
The coachman watches his horses through the window of an old, local cafe.
For the longest time, Iran was trapped in a quagmire of politics, conflict and sanctions. The culturally rich country— the birthplace of one of the oldest civilisations in the world—was demonised by the print and visual media, often portraying it as an intolerant and aggressive nation. But to deem its citizens as imbibing these faults, on the basis of the work carried out by the country’s higher echelon (government), was unfair.
Cinematic stalwarts like Abbas Kiarostami, Majid Majidi, Bahman Ghobadi and Cyrus Nowrasteh, did try changing this perception, by giving viewers glimpses of the beauty and grace hidden in the country’s landscapes and inhabitants, while also tackling intricate notions dealing with life and death. However, it probably wasn’t until Instagram and the rise of cellphone photography, as well as the initiation of the ‘Everyday’ projects (@everydayiran), that opened the world to Iran’s mundaneness and humaneness to the world. One such photographer is Nastaran Farjadpezeshk.
Always on the Go
Nastaran sees herself as a flâneur—a wanderer—constantly on the lookout for stories. “I pay close attention to what the instilled child in me wants to capture. She loves her city and what it has to offer— its people, relationships, places, as well as its forgotten and disappearing fragments. I just follow her,” she said. Armed with her iPhone, Nastaran walks around the city, keeping an eye out for the possibility of the next frame. “When I was a lecturer at the university, I was not permitted to use my DSLR on the campus. And the few times that I was permitted, I didn’t have the time to pull out the camera and shoot. That’s when it hit me that I could use my cellphone to photograph scenes and moments that I’d often pass by, while in between classes. Slowly, I began to recognise the advantages of the cameraphone, and how it allowed me to be intimate with my subjects,” she said.
A fishmonger is busy talking to one of his customers at the Saturday market, at Bandar-e Anzali. The market is rich with scents and colours, and a place where people often come to wander or to meet their friends.
Presenting Dual Narratives
Nastaran’s approach to photography is that of a documentarian. She believes in spending time at a location, minutely observing her surroundings, and finally, arriving at a conclusive narrative… Even if it entails following her subjects, and waiting for the precise moment to photograph. “It is important for me to come close to reality, and that’s what my images portray,” she said. However, sometimes, this pursual can turn out to be problematic. “I live in Mashhad, which is a religious city in Iran. People, here, don’t easily accept the presence of a camera. This is where communication comes in. If required, you should be ready to explain your intention, and be earnest about it. This is a quality that I’ve nurtured over time,” she states. But… “I engage with them only if I know that there is a story to be unearthed. Otherwise, I just observe.”
Nastaran’s photographs harbour a certain duality—of a country that is on the cusp of modernity and development, as well as a nation that’s firmly rooted in its culture. We see how the two can exist, thereby challenging our prejudiced notions of Iran. Nastaran does this by highlighting aspects like clothing, architecture and the way of life in the country. In fact, some of these pictures are reminiscent of scenes from Majid Majidi’s Children of Heaven (1997).
Her Learning Curve
Looking at her work, one would assume that Nastaran has been practising photography for a long time. However, she began shooting only five years ago. “I don’t have any formal education in the Arts. I studied electrical engineering, and later, worked as a lecturer. My interest in photography developed out of sheer curiosity for the medium. So I decided to enrol in a short-term class, where my professor, Kiarang Alaei, who I owe a lot to, helped me nurture my vision.”
However, her decision to continue with photography, occurred right after she made her first photograph, during one of her classes. “We were given an assignment to photograph stairs. Fortunately, I came across a shadow that resembled the theme, for which I received a lot of praise and encouragement,” she said.
Eventually, Nastaran also learned about the intricate details and aesthetics involved in the construction of a good photograph. For instance, when you look at her photographs, you’ll notice that her black and white images generally emphasise on shapes and forms, whereas her colour photographs are more attuned to conveying the story in the scene.
A pilgrim prays in the holy shrine of Imam Reza.
On Inspiration and Influence
Mashhad, the city she hails from, forms the crux of Nastaran’s work, as well as the basis for her inspiration. But she also received insight from the works of Duane Michals and Alfred Stieglitz, and how they captured nuances of life, in their photographs.
Later, with Instagram, she was able to interact with people who shared her passion. “I am grateful to the platform. My work has been received quite well, across the globe. The constant support and kindness never ceases to amaze me,” she said. She also commented on the algorithms that have taken over the platform… “It’s quite unfortunate the way its formula has affected our life. Photography, now, seems to be about gaining likes and followers. One caters to the masses and often loses perspective.”
“Photography is a gift to me. It has helped me to see a lot of things, which I didn’t care about earlier. But now, I have become more attuned to the ray of light, how it falls and fades. These simple things have become important to me.
Suburban kids usually spend their leisure time on the streets.
Sharing the Same Space
The thing about photographing the everyday is that it shows us our common, shared humanity; that another person’s mundaneness could very well be ours. It brings to mind something that Abbas Kiarostami had said… “I’ve often noticed that we are not able to look at what we have in front of us, unless it’s inside a frame.” Doesn’t it make you wonder if it’s the camera that would solve our problems? Perhaps that’s why the ‘Everyday’ projects on Instagram became popular—for its dismissal of stereotypes. This is also something that Nastaran has been poring herself into, through her photographs… Subtly dissolving the boundaries between the urban and the suburban, the old and the new, showing us that the two can coexist.
This article originally appeared in the July 2019 issue of Better Photography.
In 2009, after completing her Masters in Communication, from the Sadjad University of Technology, Nastaran began teaching electrical engineering, at the same university. Currently, she works as an Electrical Engineer at Vazan, a company in Iran. One of her long-term projects deals with urbanisation and the environment. You can find Nastaran @nastaran_farjadpezeshk.
