East London based artist Sepehr Badiei collects and weaves together hair from woman and trans woman to draw awareness to the current dire situation Iran.

A year later, today marks the death of Mahsa Amini

Death by the ‘morality police‘ for not wearing her headscarf properly .

What we are seeing in iran is a gender apartheid.

Iranian women’s determination, resilience, and fearlessness in the face of brutal oppression is the inspiration behind a photographic series by queer artist Sepehr Badiei. “I envision beauty as a potent medium,” says Badiei, who hopes this work will ignite public curiosity and encourage others to learn more about what is happening around the world.

Badiei and their family escaped Iran during the revolution, eventually moving to New Zealand as a refugee. They left school at the age of fourteen to pursue their passion for hairdressing, and hair now forms a central component of their artistic practice. Sourcing their material from a global roster of women and transwomen, Badiei creates otherworldly installations that weave together a resolute belief in equality and an avant-garde aesthetic sensibility.

Their latest series, photographed by Morgan White and set to appear plastered on city walls in a collaboration with the wildposting team at UNCLE, is based on two key motifs from Persian culture.

Model Sarah Q personifies the cypress tree, which represents life and rebirth. Bathed in blue light and surrounded by hair-wrapped branches, Sarah’s calm and commanding energy makes the case for world-wide female unity. Emerging from a crimson glow, movement director and model Dafni Krazoudi harnesses the power of fire, a purifying force in Zoroastrian traditions and sacred for Assyrians. Dafni’s agility and fierce strength echoes the qualities of women defying tyranny, persecution, and suppression.

“My intention is to challenge simplistic Western perceptions of Iranian women, forging a connection between the people of my homeland and the global community,” says Badiei. The posters, which will launch throughout London , emphasise the importance of freedom—of expression, of movement, of every individual to live their life as they choose.

For more information email withsep@gmail.com, or visit Instagram @badieisepehr.