Women: The Future of Mosul

Life under ISIS was brutal for all Maslawis but a huge amount of the violence was exacted against women. Womanhood was weaponised under Daesh, dichotomising women as either virgins or whores and creating strict rules, punishments and approaches to administering to both categories. As such, women need to be represented and involved in decision-making for the future of Mosul. This painting depicts women as sad, distorted witnesses, with bold, defiant and provocative gazes that blaze out from the canvas. These women are held in a dreamlike suspension although there is a great deal of movement in the brushstrokes surrounding them implying a sense of forward motion and momentum towards the future.