Newsha Tavakolian, the Iranian photographer from Magnum agency, takes center stage as the guest author of the fourth edition of the Ciclo Narrativa.
On April 25, the cultural space NARRATIVA will unveil ‘And They Laughed At Me’, an impactful exhibition that offers an intimate portrait of a society striving for freedom and change. This narrative is built from the author’s personal archive from the beginning of her career and the work she has developed over recent years.
This marks Newsha Tavakolian’s first exhibition in Portugal, presenting a photographic narrative constructed over time: the artist revisits her photographic archive, retrieving technically imperfect images from her early years as a photographer, and combines them with a new, intimate, and creative body of work about the daily challenges in Iran.
Originally destined to be discarded, these photographs offer a privileged insight into her artistic development and the social context of Iran during the 1990s; the exhibition includes images of societal daily life, significant events in the country, and moments from the author’s private sphere—reflecting an era of hope and reform under President Khatami.
However, Newsha Tavakolian’s retrospective is tinged with sadness and disillusionment, acknowledging that the promised freedoms were not realized. Another dimension of her photographs from the past decade reveals a detachment from the past, embracing an intimate exploration of the authenticity of Iranian society, reflecting her personal and professional growth in a politically tumultuous context in Iran.
The exhibition of this work reinforces, for the fourth consecutive year, NARRATIVA’s commitment to celebrating democratic values through the dissemination of photography.
In addition to the opening of the guest author’s exhibition for CICLO 2025, NARRATIVA offers over three days (April 25, 26, and 27), a free cultural program including discussions, book presentations, documentary screenings, and portfolio readings.
Maria Abranches, the first Portuguese photographer to win a World Press Photo in 2025, will present her book, ‘Maria’, on the final day.
The book, which had previously been recognized with the Novos Talentos FNAC Prize and Cortona On The Move, tells a story common to countless women whose silent contribution has built, shaped, and sustains the world as we know it. The work was developed from scratch during the NARRATIVA Masterclass and is now presented in book format.
