Moosh bokhoratet

The Persian expression “Moosh bokhoratet” literally means “May a mouse eat you”. Depending on the context, however, it can also be meant as a term of endearment, roughly “You’re sweet”. Whether it is tender or ironic depends on who says it to whom. This linguistic ambivalence is the starting point of the photographic project.

The photographic documentation offers insights into the many layers of Iran and addresses the ambiguity of signs, symbols and gestures in public space. It focuses on the social situation of Iranians in May 2022, a few months before the nationwide unrest in September. The photographs show how religious and political symbols are omnipresent and how naturally they are embedded in landscapes, cities and everyday spaces.

A central theme of the project is the use of iconic signs of the mullah regime in public space and the question of how political power is communicated through visual codes. Many of these signs at first remain incomprehensible or appear contradictory to European viewers. “Moosh bokhoratet” invites us not to interpret these symbols too quickly but to endure their ambiguity and develop our own readings.

The project sees itself less as an explanatory documentary than as a visual approach. It raises questions about meaning, perception and interpretation; answers may emerge in the eye of the beholder. The work was created alongside a commission for the Iranian tourism company Road Iran Different and deliberately moves between official representation and personal observation.