Elise Blanchard :
Afghanistan from the Inside: Since the Taliban’s Return

© Elise Blanchard / Washington Post

FROM OCTOBER 5 TO NOVEMBER 7

Elise Blanchard
Afghanistan from the Inside: Since the Taliban’s Return

Designer: Elise Desmars / Bottoms Up

Since the Taliban returned to power in 2021, Afghanistan has become increasingly remote, with journalists struggling to carry out their work there or even to gain access to the country. Consequently, our view of the country is becoming increasingly limited, seen only through the decrees issued by a Taliban emir who is growing ever more extreme in his desire to strip Afghan women of their right to exist, or through the humanitarian crisis that continues to afflict the country.
During her seven years based in Afghanistan, Elise Blanchard sought, from within, to bring greater complexity, colour and a humanity to these stories, travelling to every corner of the country and photographing it as closely as possible to its everyday realities.
Afghanistan in the aftermath of the fall also sees the return of draconian laws. The photographer covers these laws whilst seeking to document the silent resistance and strength of Afghan women: women and teenage girls fighting to survive, to hold on to a glimmer of hope, and to build a life for themselves as best they can, whether by setting up a business or studying in secret.
Furthermore, the Afghanistan of 2021, as depicted in this exhibition, is also a country of the absurd: Taliban men attending classes to learn English or ‘human rights’, strolling through perfume shops to buy fake Chanel, and enjoying the modernity of the cities whilst the country sinks into a humanitarian crisis.
This exhibition aims to offer a nuanced view of the country, with all its sometimes hidden realities, whilst continuing, time and again, to showcase women and their faces, despite the bans.

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Espace Culturel E. Leclerc
Boulevard du 6 juin
Open Monday to Saturday from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Free Admission