Abstract:
The mobilizations of the past thirteen years in Southwest Asia and North Africa suggest
a shift in the visual culture of the region. From the start of the Arab Spring in 2011 to the
latest uprising in Iran, the visual output of protests has been marked by the hypervisibility
of the figure of the female protester as an icon of revolution. The following thesis dissects
five cases of women in iconic protest imagery across the region: Egypt’s blue bra girl and
Turkey’s woman in red, Sudan’s Kandaka, Lebanon’s Kick-Queen, and Iran’s haircutting ceremonies. I both adopt and depart from Hariman and Lucaites (2007) study of
photojournalistic icons to explore different dimensions of iconicity and its impact on
women’s mobilization. From iconic images to iconic action, the newfound centrality of
women in protest imagery seems to be paving the way for new observations on visual
culture, gender dynamics, and communication in the region.
