(Un)making Femininity on the Walls of Tehran

Abstract

This article explores how a series of street art in Tehran that address the restriction of the right of women to stadium, challenge the official discourse of femininity in the semiotic landscape of Tehran. It investigates how through techniques of carnivalistic satire, these imageries subvert the gender orders that dominate the official visual discourse of femininity in the urban space. The article proposes that the function of this street art series as a form of resistance, is enacted both by their internal generic structure, and in relation to the official mural landscape of the city.