Artissima award granted to Zehra Doğan

* Photo: kedistan.net

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Artissima, a prominent contemporary art fair in Italy, has granted the first edition of its "Carol Rama Award" to Kurdish journalist-painter Zehra Doğan.

The award is granted in memory of artist Carol Rama from Italy to the artists "who embody, through their research and artworks, the ideal of unconventional female creativity and artistic freedom that Carol Rama enacted and transmitted with her works and personality."

The Artissima Fair has announced the award in following words:

"The jury unanimously awards the first edition of the Carol Rama Award by Fondazione Sardi per l'Arte to Zehra Doğan because of the striking power of her work to translate a strongly situated experience, drawing on multiple longstanding aesthetic heritages.

"In relation to the oeuvre of Carol Rama and the Award's focus on the transmission of her unconventional idea of creativity and artistic freedom—inflected by her position as a woman of her generation in Italy—the jury pointed to a resonance between the artists' approaches, notably in their strategic appropriation of found materials from their immediate environment."

Sentenced to 2 years, 9 months, 22 days in prison over her paintings and news published in the period of curfews in the Kurdish-majority eastern and southeastern provinces of Turkey in 2015, Doğan was arrested in July 2017 after her prison sentence was upheld. Several prominent artists from abroad expressed support for her in this process, including Ai Weiwei and Banksy.

Keeping on painting in prison, Doğan was released in February 2019. In January 15, 2019, she had been nominated by Index on Censorship for the 2019 "Freedom of Expression Award" in the Arts category. The prize was awarded to her; she received it on 5 April 2019 in London.

Who is Zehra Doğan?

Graduated from Southeast Dicle University as a teacher of arts, journalist and artist Doğan beginning since the foundation of JİNHA (Women's New Agency) in 2012 until its forcible closure in 2016 worked as a reporter and editor for the agency.

She reported from the Mardin province and districts since Jul. 24, 2015 when the clashes erupted and curfews were imposed and painted the pictures of the conflict areas.

She was detained on Jul. 23, 2016 in Nusaybin from where she was reporting, and was later arrested under charges of "membership in a terrorist organization" and "terrorist propaganda". Doğan was released on Dec. 9, 2016 by a Mardin court, yet she was sentenced to 33 months in the final hearing on Mar. 22, for sharing her paintings on the social media and reporting on the notes of a 10 year old girl Elif Akboğa.

Following the endorsement of her sentence by the local appeals court Doğan was jailed on Jun. 12, 2017 and placed in Diyarbakır Prison and transferred to the distant Tarsus Maximum Security Prison after winning the IWMF award.

During the time when Doğan was residing in the Diyarbakır Type D Prison, the prison administration did not provide her with necessary equipment. Doğan, then, produced dye from plant roots and menstruation blood. She drew paintings using the dye.

Famous muralist Banksy in protest of her conviction reflected Zehra Doğan's painting with the legend "She is convicted to 2 years 9 months and 22 days for painting this picture" and posted his graphic depicting Doğan behind bars.

She was released from prison in February 2019.

Awards

In 2012, she received with Hazal Peker, the Special Jury Prize, in Kurdish journalism, Musa Anter Kürtçe for her work entitled "Li Rojava welat emanetê jinên kurd in" (In Western Kurdistan, the country is entrusted to Kurdish women).
In 2015, she was awarded the Metin Gökçetepe Prize for her work on Yezidi women who had escaped captivity at the hands of the Islamic State.
In January 2017, she received the "Rebellion's Artist in the World 2017" prize, the prize for rebellious artists awarded by the Global Investigative Journalism Network.
On 5 November 2017, the Swiss Association of Free Thinkers, Frei Denken, awarded the 2017 "Freethinker Prize" to Zehra Doğan and Masih Alinejad, the Iranian journalist.
On 3 May 2018 Deutscher Journalisten Verband (German Journalists' Association) awarded the "Printemps de liberté de presse" prize to Zehra Doğan. The award was received on behalf of the journalist by the Italian-Almanian journalist Ingo Zamperoni.
On June 19, 2018, she received the "Courage in Journalism" award from the International Women's Media Foundation. The ceremony takes place in New York on 27 November 2018.
On 8 October 2018, at the 84th International PEN Congress in India, Zehra Doğan became an honorary member.
On January 15, 2019, Zehra Doğan was nominated by Index on Censorship for the 2019 "Freedom of Expression Award" in the Arts category. The prize was awarded to her, and she received it on 5 April 2019 in London.
On 11 October 2019, in Beirut, she received the "Exceptional Courage in Journalism Award" from the May Chidiac Foundation.
In February 2020, in Italy, she was awarded the "Special Prize of Roberto Scialabba".
On October 16, 2020, during the 14th edition of the Festival of Feminine Excellence in Genoa, Italy, she receives the "Hypatia Award for International Feminine Excellence".
In November 2020, she receives the "Carol Rama Award", Artissima 2020.

(EMK/SD)

Artissima award granted to Zehra Doğan

İstanbul

Who is Zehra Doğan?

Awards