WUNRN
http://newsok.com/photography-exhibit-explores-women-in-prison-in-oklahoma/article/3875412/?page=2
Invisible Eve:
Crime & Wisdom – Photos of Women in US Prisons
Invisible
Eve, 2 of 35 images
By Yousef Khanfar
Invisible Eve:
Crime & Wisdom, touches on prescient social issues. In a nation
where the average rate of female incarceration per 100,000 adult female
residents is 83 as of 2013, Oklahoma has close to twice the average at 136.
According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, Oklahoma has the highest rates
of incarceration. These statistical percentages translate into very stark
reality for female prisoners in Oklahoma, which was the context which award
winning photographer Yousef Khanfar sought to explore and humanize in his
Invisible Eve project. Khanfer shifts from his work with landscapes, and the
abstract movements and moods of earlier projects, into the gritty and carefully
defined world of female inmates.
“All the women I
photographed in this project were united by misfortune of circumstances and
non-violent crimes. It was not inmates I saw through my lens, but human beings;
deserving of a voice and opportunity for a fresh chance at life.”
In this harsh
world, Khanfer came to the understanding that he might not be able to help the
women inside prison, but their voices might be able to reach beyond the bars. Invisible
Eve harnesses the chorus of incarcerated female voices with a united
mission to uplift and offer strength for the struggles of those outside the
prison walls. Each woman shared words of wisdom from her own regrettable
experience to pass on to the next generation. The inmates felt that it was a
chance to become part of the solution, instead of part of the problem.
Their messages are
insightful and powerful to read; each woman’s unique inflection and perspective
contributing to the whole. Some voices breathe heavily, while others silently
scream into the void. At times the words are delivered with the all the finesse
of an oracle unveiling the most sublime nobility of humanity.
Khanfer used only
natural light, and photographed his subjects against a white, seamless
paper. “I wanted [these women] to leap out of the image and harsh
whiteness; greeting viewers with their eyes.” Yousef Khanfar. Some women
were photographed with their children who, with their guardians, pay the
ultimate price of incarceration. Some women chose to be photographed between
two walls, emphasizing and reminding the viewer that their minds, souls, and
hearts are as entrapped as their bodies.
Invisible Eve, with its
compelling content, presents a rare educational opportunity to experience an otherwise
exclusive world and engage the community on a timely issue. The social
relevancy of the material offers the prospect for collaboration with such
organizations such as the Girl Scouts, ACLU, Women’s Shelters, Big Brothers Big
Sisters, and non-profits working with local women prisons.