Engage with photo books celebrating female empowerment in the Arab world at the Ackland

The Ackland Art Museum promotes female empowerment and will allow viewers to engage with Arab and Iranian photography at its upcoming photo books pop-up in conjunction with the "She Who Tells a Story" exhibit. 

"She Who Tells a Story: Women Photographers from Iran and the Arab World" is an exhibition tour by the Museum of Fine Arts Boston that brings together the work of 12 female artists’ work depicting Iran and the Arab world. The exhibition has been on view at the Ackland Art Museum since September and will be available for viewing through Dec. 1. 

The photo book pop-up will occur in the lobby of the Ackland Art Museum just outside the "She Who Tells a Story" exhibit on Nov. 8 from 6 to 8 p.m. The event will allow attendees to look at and flip through rare and special photo books from the Sloane Art Library collection. 

“I think it is really great to see photographs on the wall and then also be able to handle them in a book form in a more intimate experience,” said Alice Whiteside, head of the Sloane Art Library. 

Visitors will be assisted when handling the books because some of them may be fragile, said Lindsey Hale, public programs coordinator at the Ackland Art Museum. 

“It's really nice because when you go into an art museum, you're expected to maybe look at something from a distance and get close but you can't touch it,” Hale said. “With the books, it really adds a whole new dimension.”

The books on display at the pop-up event will contain works by the same photographers that are featured in the permanent "She Who Tells a Story" exhibit. These photos will reflect themes of Arab and Iranian culture in general.

“We are hoping that for the 'She Who Tells a Story' pop-up, they can go in and look at the images in the show, contemplate those and just get a better context of what photography has been like for these female photographers and the Arab and Eastern world,” Hale said. 

Head of Public Programs at the Ackland Art Museum Allison Portnow Lathrop said that in the "She Who Tells a Story" exhibit as a whole, she appreciates the different perspectives of Arab and Iranian culture that the pictures bring. 

“There are a few that have perspectives of motherhood and I have two little kids, so for me, I see a picture of myself when I look at those images,” Portnow Lathrop said.

The "She Who Tells a Story" exhibit emphasizes female empowerment and the photo book pop-up will reflect that, Hale said. 

“For me personally, one of the most important things is seeing women and how they choose to document their home countries or other female subjects,” Hale said. “I think it's really important to let their voice be heard.”

In addition to motherhood and female empowerment, there are also major themes of identity, culture and borders that will be reflected in the pop-up along with the "She Who Tells a Story" exhibit as a whole. 

“One thing that I hope people will take from this is understanding how others capture what might be important to them,” Hale said. “I think there's something in there for everyone to learn from or to reflect on.” 

arts@dailytarheel.com