Zehra Doğan

Zehra Doğan (born April 14, 1989) is a Kurdish artist and journalist and author from Amed, Turkey. She is a founder and the editor of Jinha, a feminist Kurdish news agency with an all-female staff.[1] In 2017, she was sentenced to 2 years, 9 months and 22 days in prison for “terrorist propaganda” because of her news coverage, social media posts, and sharing a painting of hers on social media.[2] Her painting depicts the destruction of the Nusaybin, town in southeastern Turkey, after the clashes between state security forces and Kurdish insurgents. After she finished her sentence, she was released from imprisonment from Tarsus Prison on 24 February 2019.[3][4]

Zehra Doğan
Dogan in 2016
Born1989 (age 30–31) [1]
CitizenshipTurkish
OccupationArtist, journalist
Known forPainting of the destruction of Nusaybin

Career

In February 2016, Doğan moved to and began reporting from Nusaybin. On 21 July 2016, she was detained at a café in Nusaybin and then incarcerated on July 23rd in Diyarbakir prison[5]. On 2 March 2017, she was acquitted of the charge of "belonging to an illegal organisation", but was sentenced to 2 years, 9 months and 22 days in jail for her news reporting and posting a painting to social media.[6][7]

“I was given two years and 10 months [jail time] only because I painted Turkish flags on destroyed buildings. However, they (Turkish government) caused this. I only painted it,” Doğan wrote on Twitter following the sentencing.

In prison, she and other women created the newspaper Özgür Gündem Zindan[8] (Free Agenda Dungeon), whose name is a play on Özgür Gündem (Free Agenda), an Istanbul-based publication that catered to Kurdish audiences.[7][9]

Her publication Jinha was shut down on 29 October 2016 by Turkish authorities, one of over 100 media outlets shut down since the failed military coup in July 2016.[10]

Recognition

In 2015, Doğan was the recipient of the Metin Göktepe Journalism Award, named after the journalist who died in police custody in Turkey in 1996. The award was for Zehra Doğan's work about Yazidi women escaping from ISIS captivity.[11]

In January 2017, she was recognized by the "Rebellion's Artist in the World 2017" award bestowed by the Global Investigative Journalism Network.

On November 5 2017, the Freethinkers Association of Switzerland, Frei Denken, awarded her the "Freethinker Prize" for 2017, along with Masih Alinejad, the Iranian journalist.[12]

At the end of 2017, she was awarded the prize for artists in rebellion by the Global Investigative Journalism Network (GIJN).[13]

On May 3 2018, Deutscher Journalisten Verbrand (The German Journalists Association) awarded the "Spring of Press Freedom" prize to Zehra Doğan. German-Italian journalist Ingo Zamperoni received the prize on her behalf.

In October 2018, Doğan received the International Women's Media Foundation's 2018 Courage in Journalism Award.[14]

In October 2018, Zehra Doğan became an honorary member of PEN International at its 84th Congress in India.[15]

In March 2019, Doğan was nominated for Index on Censorship’s 2019 Freedom of Expression Awards in the Arts category.[16] She received the prize in London on April 5 2019.[17]

On October 11 2019 in Beyrouth, she received the "Exceptional Courage in Journalism Award" of the May Chidiac Foundation.[18]

International reaction

In November 2017, Chinese dissident artist Ai WeiWei published a letter he wrote in solidarity with Doğan's case, drawing parallels between Chinese and Turkish repression of artistic expression.[19] Zehra Doğan answers the artist from prison: “Art is the best instrument for the struggle”.[20]

On 16 March 2018, England-based graffiti artist, Banksy unveiled a mural in New York, measuring 70 feet long, showing black tally marks for the days of Doğan's imprisonment, with one set becoming bars behind which Doğan's face looks out from jail. Speaking to The New York Times, Banksy said, "I really feel for her... I’ve painted things much more worthy of a custodial sentence.”[21][22]

Exhibitions
  • September 2020, Berlin Biennale, Germany.[23]
  • August 2020, Lucca Italia, group show, « A volte penso che... », Ex Chiesa di San Matteo, Piazza San Matteo, Lucca.[24][25]
  • On July 21, 2020, Zehra Doğan pays homage to the city of Brescia, in Italy, with a large mural artwork for coronavirus resistance.[26][27]
  • July 2020, Ravenna Festival, Italy, two performances during the "Roads of Friendship" concerts, with the Kurdish singer Aynur Doğan, the Giovanile Luigi Cherubini Orchestra and the Syrian Expat Philharmonic Orchestra (SEPO) conducted by Riccardo Muti.[28]
  • January 2020, Nassauischer Kunstverein in Wiesbaden "To each Age its art –To Art its Freedom"[29] [30]
  • January 2020, Peace Forum 2020 in Basel, Switzerland [31]
  • December 2019, Middle East Institute (MEI) Art Gallery, Washington, United States. "Speaking Across Mountains: Kurdish Artists in Dialogue".[32]
  • November-January 2019, Santa Giulia Museum, Brescia, Italy, "Avremo anche giorni migliori. Opere dalle carceri turche" as part of the Brescia Peace Festival. [33][34][35]
  • November 2019, Galerie de l'Espace des femmes – Editions des femmes, Paris, France "Œuvres évadées"[36]
  • November 2019, Drawing Center, New York, United States "The Pencil is a Key - Drawings by Incarcerated Artists"[37]
  • May 2019, Tate Modern, London, Great-Britain, installation titled "Ê Li Dû Man" (What is left behind)[38] [39]
  • March 2019, Rennes Opera House, France, exhibition titled "Eyes wide open" (Les yeux grands ouverts) [40]
  • December 2018 "Kurdish Art Fair" 2nd edition, London, United Kingdom [41]
  • January 2018, Tour Saint Aubin in Angers, France, exhibition titled "Les yeux grands ouverts" (Eyes wide open) [42]
  • September 2018, Pays de Morlaix, France "Festival des Autres Mondes" (Festival of the Other Worlds) [43] [44]
  • August 2017, Festival de cinéma de Douarnenez, France, exhibition titled "Les yeux grands ouverts" (Eyes wide open) [45]
  • February 2017, Diyarbakir, Turkey, exhibition titled "141".[46]

Bibliography
  • Zehra Doğan "Avremo anche giorni migliori. Opere dalle carceri turche" (We shall also know better days. Works from Turkish prisons) Art Catalogue, Skira Publishing ISBN 8857243303
  • Zehra Doğan, "Nous aurons aussi de beaux jours : écrits de prison" (We shall also know better days: prison writings), translated by Naz Oke, Daniel Fleury, Editions des femmes, October 2019 ISBN 978-2849754894
  • Zehra Doğan, "Les Yeux grands ouverts', (Eyes Wide Open) translated by Naz Oke, Fage Editions, July 2017 ISBN 978-2849754894

References
  1. "Zehra Doğan". IWMF. 22 July 2018. Retrieved 22 July 2018.
  2. "PEN America Celebrates Release of Turkish Artist, Writer Zehra Doğan". PEN America. 25 February 2019. Retrieved 12 March 2019.
  3. "Journalist Zehra Doğan released from prison". ANF News. Retrieved 24 February 2019.
  4. "Turkey • Zehra Doğan came out of jail today". Kedistan. 24 February 2019.
  5. "Zehra Dogan thrown in jail: react!". Kedistan. 23 July 2016.
  6. "Free Zehra Doğan - Voice Project". Voice Project. Retrieved 16 March 2018.
  7. "Facts to Know About Jailed Turkish Artist Zehra Doğan | artnet News". artnet News. 29 March 2017. Retrieved 16 March 2018.
  8. "Özgür Gündem manuscrit édité depuis la prison des femmes". Kedistan. 26 September 2016.
  9. "Zehra Doğan, artist, journalist and activist released pending trial - IFEX". IFEX. Retrieved 16 March 2018.
  10. "Jinha News (English)". Jin News Agency. Jin News Agency. 22 October 2016. Archived from the original on 22 October 2016. Retrieved 18 March 2018.
  11. Hatice Kamer (12 June 2017). "Gazeteci Zehra Doğan tutuklandı". BBC World Service (in Turkish). Retrieved 18 March 2018.
  12. "2017 "Freethinker Prize" for Zehra Doğan". Kedistan. 5 November 2017.
  13. "10 Acts of Artistic Rebellion". GIJN.
  14. Kurdistan24. "Imprisoned Kurdish journalist wins Courage in Journalism Award". Kurdistan24. Retrieved 4 November 2018.
  15. "The 84th PEN International Congress closes in India with a focus on free expression and women writers". PEN International.
  16. Censorship, Index on (8 March 2019). "#IndexAwards2019: Artist Zehra Doğan refused to be silenced". Index on Censorship. Retrieved 10 March 2019.
  17. "2019 Freedom of Expression Awards". Index on Censorship.
  18. "Zehra Doğan, "I'm accepting this prize in the name of the Peoples of Rojava"". Kedistan. 12 October 2019.
  19. Kurdistan24. "Ai Weiwei pens letter to Kurdish artist imprisoned in Turkey". Kurdistan24. Retrieved 16 March 2018.
  20. "Zehra Doğan to Ai Weiwei, "Art is the best instrument for the struggle"". Kedistan. 15 March 2016.
  21. Reporters, Telegraph (16 March 2018). "Banksy creates mural in New York in support of jailed Turkish artist". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 16 March 2018.
  22. "Banksy just unveiled a new mural in New York City and this is what it means". The Independent. Retrieved 4 November 2018.
  23. "11th Berlin Biennale participants". Berlin Biennale.
  24. "I sometimes think that.... | Exhibition | Prometeo Gallery | by Ida Pisani". www.prometeogallery.com. Retrieved 28 July 2020.
  25. Conta, Silvia (1 August 2020). "23 artisti nella sede di Lucca di Prometeo Gallery". Exibart Magazine.
  26. "Zehra Doğan omaggia la Resistenza di Brescia". Art Wave.
  27. "Zehra Doğan omaggia Brescia". Comune di Brescia. 21 July 2020.
  28. "Riccardo Muti sul podio nel cuore del Parco Archeologico di Paestum: "In difesa della civiltà"". Corriera della Serra.
  29. "Der Zeit ihre Kunst /". Nassauischer Kunstverein.
  30. "Wiesbaden • A dual exhibition denouncing totalitarianism". Kedistan.
  31. "Basel Peace Forum : Cities of Peace". Basel Peace Forum.
  32. "Speaking Across Mountains: Kurdish Artists in Dialogue". Middel East Institute.
  33. "As part of the Peace Festival, Brescia holds a Zehra Doğan exhibition". Kedistan. 30 October 2019.
  34. "L'artista che va alla guerra". Repubblica. 27 September 2019.
  35. ""Avremo anche giorni migliori – Zehra Doğan. Opere dalle carceri turche"". Brescia Musei.
  36. "Zehra Dogan : « Je suis moins heureuse qu'en prison »". Le Point. 19 November 2019.
  37. "For the Incarcerated, Drawing Is a Lifeline". The New York Times.
  38. "Who are we? With Counterpoints Arts and the Open University". Tate Modern.
  39. "Zehra Doğan at the Tate Modern in London". Kedistan. 11 May 2019.
  40. "Zehra Doğan's Exhibition in Rennes • A Living Story". Kedistan. 9 March 2019.
  41. "2018 Kurdish Art Fair • 8th December, in London with Zehra Doğan". Kedistan. 12 November 2018.
  42. "L'artiste Zehra Dogan, une leçon de résistance". L'Ouest France. 23 January 2018.
  43. "Roudour. Hommage à l'artiste Zehra Dogan". Le Télégramme. 23 September 2018.
  44. "Zehra Doğan • A message to the Festival of the Other Worlds". Kedistan. 21 September 2018.
  45. "Zehra Doğan, a book, an exhibition, your support". Kedistan. 31 July 2017.
  46. "Cezaevindeki günlerini temsilen: Zehra Doğan'dan '141' resim sergisi". Gazete Karınca. 10 February 2017.
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