The voyages, the photographic process

Place: Iraqi Kurdistan
Time: Spring 1992-Summer 1994 - Winter 1997

Caught in the turbulence of a dramatic and violent history, the Kurdish people have been driven from their lands over and over. Paradoxically, the very rhythm of their land and of the seasons seems to give them the strength to live, and to resist, as well as the hope to break the cycle of a History which has denied their existence.

It is the encounter with these people in continual motion, who draw upon a phenomenal energy to live and to construct their identity, which has been the driving force behind my research. Questioning and attempts to approach themes which are close to my own heart: nomadism, property, exile and roots. With the rhythm of seasons, especially in rural environment, and particularly in the company of women, my photographic work took shape.

Spring 1992
I take a first voyage. Ten years of war between Iran and Iraq have turned this border region into a ruined land, littered with mines. The exodus of 1991 has only worsened the situation. In this context, how can men and women still believe in life?

Arriving there, I find my attention drawn naturally towards the women. In many places, the men are gone, lost in another life, carrying weapons. In some villages, the only people left are widows and their children. Strong personalities who inspire me, and who become the motifs of my work, while shedding light on my desire to follow this path.

"200 families of refugees from Kirkouk live in the former Iraqi Security prison. There, at few meters from the cells where some of their own were tortured, women organize life. Behind blankets which are used for doors, bread is baked with blowlamps in improvised ovens. A bit further, some young girls, who became craftsmen, sink stones and make hot-plate to cook." (April 1992, Suleymaniah).

Summer 1994
Many families have moved back into their villages and taken back their land. From the plain of Badinan to the furthest eastern valleys, it is the season of harvest and gathering. The harvest is an important time, revealing injustice and encouraging cooperation. The Kurds cherish this land which allows them to live, nourishing them and helping them recover their identity. Despite the rockets launched by Turkey and Iraq, aimed at burning the fields, when the crops are ready to be gathered, the harvest takes place nonetheless. People reap the fields to keep their community alive.

"June is also the time when mills never stop. In the noise of the millstones, the dust of grinded grains, women appraise in the palm of their hand the fineness of the flour, topple over their bags, into the funnels, stop a second. The light catches them, sculptures their laughter and their weariness" (June 1994, Zakho).

Winter 1997
The mountains are an important place for the Kurds. Serving as both ramparts and refuge. They also can become a prison for the inhabitants. Symbolically, through the rites and customs, but also physically once the snow begins to fall. Yet from one valley to the next, men and women travel to visit one another nurturing their solidarity at the most difficult times.
I decide to settle in and spend part of the winter, to test myself and to photograph this time of isolation and renewal.
In the high north-eastern valleys, the villages which had been rebuilt in 1994 are once again deserted. The inhabitants have fled the violent confontation between the turkish army and the PKK. Further south, on the slopes bordering Iran, the villagers enjoy a respite while facing the difficulty of daily life.

"The sun hasn't yet risen, though a nearby rooster's been announcing if for some time. It snowed all night. The snow, splendid, joyous, like the young girls in the family who, obliged to get up because of the Ramazan rituals, let themselves blend with this tender environment." (January 1997 - Gardeshekal).

Since the outset of my work, these people so deeply-rooted in life call out to me. I try to capture what rises to the surface, and what arrives through this encounter.

Anne Delassus