INTRODUCTION

Mainstream media images of women in Bangladesh generally fall into two categories: the oppressed and the starving. The photographs in this online exhibition challenge these stereotypes by documenting the lives of active, independent, economically self-sufficient Bangladeshi women. Representing a wide range of backgrounds and experiences, the women in these portraits articulate differing, even contrasting notions of women's roles and rights in contemporary Bangladesh. From the housekeeper who breaks the vicious cycle of generations of prostitution to the journalist who draws attention to the plight of rape victims, each woman offers a unique vision of female empowerment in Bangladeshi society.

While the images in I to Eye portray ten women through the eyes of photographer Fariba Alam, the women's individual voices emerge through their accompanying interviews. These interviews not only offer a revealing glimpse of the hopes and accomplishments of the women, but also blur the line between photographer and subject so that, in a sense, these images become self-portraits. By presenting these women's lives in their own words, Alam, herself a Muslim woman of Bangladeshi descent, hopes to reformulate the self-identities of Bangladeshi women. In the words of Alam, "Self-documentary projects are imperative because so much of our narrative has been informed by erroneous media representations.... In order to foster our collective and changing self, we need to continue to create new and more reliable stories."

This online exhibition was created in December 2001. To reach Fariba Alam, email her at faribaalam@yahoo.com