Resilience through Art: Meet the Iranian protesting by portraying female strength and sexuality

Half a year has passed since the murder of Mahsa Amini at the hands of the religious morality police in Iran, but the “Women, Life, Freedom” revolution still continues despite the Iranian government's severe crackdown. 

Amidst this, Ghazaleh Rastgar, an Iranian ex-pat, and multidisciplinary artist has been going around the globe painting murals and designing posters in support of the revolution.

“The main message in my art has always been respect for life, respect for women, and respect for nature,” Rastgar told Euronews Culture in a remote interview from Mexico City where painting murals for Women’s History Month in March.

Her art – ranging from graphic illustrations to murals – celebrates female strength, spirituality, and sexuality. She says women and their issues are a common theme in her art due to the early years of her life spent in Iran.

“I grew up in Iran until I was 14 so I got to experience how the suppressive government affected my life directly,” she said.

Rastgar moved to Canada as a teenager where she says she had the “freedom” to unlearn many of the things she had been indoctrinated with during her childhood in Iran.

“I didn't even realize how it had affected my psyche. After many years, I realized that a lot of my thoughts and a lot of my issues with myself are a product of suppression and patriarchy.”

Rastgar recalls how as a child she used to paint with her aunt (also an artist).

“We (artists) make art because we have to. It’s part of our psyche. We like to think in a visual way so it's like changing your ideas into metaphors that are visually understandable,” she said.

A graduate of Ontario College of Art and Design, Rastgar worked as a graphic and web designer in the early years of her career before realizing