Shirin Fathi

The Disobedient Nose دماغ نافرمان

The Disobedient Nose is a series of photographic works about ‘a nose that doesn’t want to be tamed’. Iran sees the greatest number of rhinoplasties in the world; a topic often discussed openly across generations and holds cultural meaning. Shirin Fathi uses her own face to explore the inherent defiance of women making their own choices against society’s biases. Fathi experiments with the shifting nature of identity in relation to cosmetic surgery through roleplay, prostheses and make-up. In one portrait she mimics a male patient in Renaissance medical illustrations while another references an early Indian technique of skin grafting to encourage growth on nose.

Shirin Fathi undertook an embodied research process for The Disobedient Nose. She began by impersonating a patient, repeatedly visiting beauty clinics and recording her exchanges with cosmetic surgeons. She also investigated 16th-century medical drawings at Wellcome Collection to understand early facial modifications procedures. The surgery practice toolkit and silicon prostheses modelled after her own face helped her reverse the role of artist and surgeon. Does a cosmetic surgeon have the artistic sensibility of a sculptor? Could she, as an artist, play the role of a surgeon? (Text courtesy of the Wellcome Collection)