پنهان و درون تا بیرون و عیان زندگی ایرانی ها

حسین فاطمی عکاسی را از سال ۱۳۷۶شروع کرد و ۳سال به عنوان بهترین عکاس خبری ایران توسط دوربین نت شناخته شد. عکسهای او در مجلات معتبر دنیا از جمله تایم، نیوزویک، نیویورک تایمز، پاریماچ، واشینگتن پست، گاردین و… به چاپ رسیده‌اند. و در کشورهای لبنان، ترکیه،پاکستان، افغانستان، عراق، گرجستان، روسیه، هند، سومالی و کنیا کار کرده است. او هم اکنون عکاس آژانس Panos Pictures در ایران و منطقه خاورمیانه است.

Before the Islamic Revolution in 1979, Iran under the Shah had close relations with the United States which saw it as a reliable ally in a volatile region and an important bulwark against the neighboring Soviet Union. With its vast oil reserves, Iran was a pivotal power in the geopolitical landscape of the Middle East and the Shah’s drive to secularize the country aligned with Western intentions in the region. All this changed, however, with the revolution that brought Ayatollah Khomeni to power and inaugurated decades of virulent anti-Americanism. For over twenty years, the news and imagery coming out of Iran have been dominated by chador-clad women, flag burning demonstrations and the reports of nuclear skulduggery. The reality of daily life in this ancient country, however, is much more complex and diverse

A cleric and his family walking on Valiasr Street

A young couple watching western films in a private apartment

Girls, all members of Iran’s Basij Islamist militia. The volunteer militia was set up by Iran’s late revolutionary leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini to defend the 1979 Islamic revolution. Although its exact strength is unknown, observers estimate that hundreds of thousands of young and old Iranian men and women are members of the nationwide network

Two women weight training in a female only gym

A man adjusts a woman’s tiara in a bridal clothing shop. As it is forbidden for an unrelated man and a woman to be together under such circumstances the dress is fitted in a part of the shop that is out of view of the street or the public

Women are exercising in a gym

A cleric walks past a mural of a pistol in the colours of the US flag painted on the wall of the former US embassy in Tehran

Women play pool in a men only gym, which is forbidden for women to enter

A soldier from the Iranian Revolutionary Guard (Basij) shoots up a US flag with his AK47

Varzaneh, Isfahan Province: A group of women, dressed in white chadors, crossing the Varzaneh bridge. Traditionally, in the region, white is worn to ward off evil.

A naked woman and her client. The woman is a prostitute working to pay for the cost of raising her two children

The mother of Martyrs, those who died in the Iran-Iraq war, praying at the graves of their sons and surrounded by their portraits

A naked woman, with a tattoo at the base of her spine, lies on a bed. The woman is a prostitute working to pay for the cost of raising her two children

Female relatives of men killed during the Iran – Iraq War (1980–1988) offer prayers at a memorial site near the Iraqi border. Thousands of Iranians travel annually on Rahian-e Nour (Travellers of the Path of Light) Tours. They are usually female relatives paying respects to their dead fathers, husbands and sons

Two young women, having enjoyed a drink at a party, dance together. Although unrelated men and women are forbidden to socialise together, many people ignore these strictures in the privacy of their own homes

A billboard featuring the present supreme leader of Iran Ali Khamenei (L) and the spiritual leader of the Iranian revolution, Ayatollah Khomeini (R). Below them are portraits commemorating some of the young Martyrs of the Iran-Iraq war

A group of teenage boys sit on a grafitti covered wall surrounding a park in Ekbatan. Behind them is a high rise residential tower

A mural, seen through a glass window, on Enqelab Avenue featuring supreme leader of Iran Ali Khamenei (right), a soldier (Hossein Fahmideh) and the spiritual leader of the Iranian revolution Ayatollah Khomeini -left

A group of women, dressed in white chadors, during Friday prayers. Traditionally, in the region, white is worn to ward off evil

Teenage boys practice Parkour, a sport using the urban landscape as an obstacle course, in a park in Ekbatan. Behind them is a high rise residential tower

A group of women, wearing knotted veils, walk together during the ‘Chehel Manbar’ (Fourty Pulpits) ceremony held the day before Ashura in Khorramabad. Traditionally, Iranian women walk bare-footed to light 40 candles in designated places in the centre of the city, starting early in the morning

Two women weight training in a female only gym

Serial killer Mohammad Bijeh, who was convicted of kidnapping and murdering 21 people, most of them children, is hauled into the air hanging from the arm of a crane after his execution on March 16, 2005. Bijeh, branded ‘the vampire of the desert’ in Iran, was lashed 100 times and hanged before thousands of spectators

A couple talking in the privacy of Bam-eTehran, the ‘roof of Terhan

A woman reads the Koran in a cemetery by the light of a torch

A band practice in secret as ‘rock music’ is banned

26 year old Nasim dances at her wedding reception. By law, women and men should stay separate at weddings but many people, in private, ignore this restriction and celebrate their wedding in mixed company.

Two young women practicing the violin

A woman during the ‘Chehel Manbar’ (Fourty Pulpit) ceremony, held the day before Ashura in Khorramabad. Traditionally, Iranian women walk bare-footed to light 40 candles in designated places in the centre of the city, starting early in the morning

A Zoroastrian woman sits at a table with burning candles during a ceremony to mark Sadeh, an ancient feast celebrating the creation of fire. It has been observed since the days when their religion was the dominant belief in the powerful Persian Empire

A couple smoke on a roof, surrounded by satelites hidden from view from the ground as satelite televison is banned.

Two young couples sit inside a tent smoking a shisha (sheesha, narghile, hookah), an act that has been banned for women in public

A group of young women stand on a terrace at Bam-e Tehran (Roof of Terhan), an area overlooking the capital. One of the young women has a dressing on her nose following plastic surgery. Iran has the highest rate of nose surgery in the world with a reported 200,000 operations taking place each year

Evening prayers at a mosque near Vakil Bazaar

Women smoking a shisha (sheesha, narghile, hookah), an act that has been banned for women in public

Female members of the Basij, a voluntary militia, stand next to a pile of AK-47s, following a military parade held to mark Basij Week

A woman prays while her friend is smoking and watching television

Two young women smoking a cigarette on the balcony of a house. As they are in private they are able to wear T-shirts and have their hair uncovered.

Female members of the ancient Sabaean Mandean religious sect preform a ritual cleansing during an annual baptism held on the banks of the Karoun River. Water is everything to the Sabaean Mandeans who are baptised in it, get married in it and receive their last rites by the river’s edge

A young man plays a guitar in a park in Shiraz

Femal pilgrims pray in the shrine of Emamzadeh Khadija Khatun

A sales woman and a customer look at a lingerie catalog while another woman tries on a bra

A boy rides a bike in a housing estate in the Ekbatan district

Women practicing Taekwondo at a gym are reflected in a mirror

A group of women walking near the 1323 CE Masjid-e Jame – Friday Mosque

Shervin is in his bedroom with his dog. In Iran, because of Islamic rules about dogs being considered dirty animals, people are not allowed to keep dogs. Most people who have dogs, keep them in their houses as the police are likely to take them if they walk them in public