Stephanie Sinclaire
Born 1973 in Miami, Florida
Lives and Works in New York, New York and Beirut, Lebanon
In this series of photographs, journalist Stephanie Sinclair documents Afghani women being treated for extensive self-inflicted burns. These women, who were being cared for in a rudimentary public hospital in the town of Herat in western Afganistan, set themselves on fire in acts of utter desperation. Some of the women shared their personal histories of prolonged abuse at the hands of their husbands or families with Sinclair.
Sinclair’s images mark an exchange of trust and compassion. By consenting to be photographed at their most vulnerable, the women in these images demonstrate a rare bravery. The representation of their suffering exposes the everyday violence against women that is made more pernicious when it remains hidden. Partially in response to the widespread attention these images received from media outlets around the world, a new burn unit was created in Herat.
Read About the Artist
"Women's Work"
—T Magazine/The New York Times (February 2010)
"Photo Gallery: The Polygamists"
—National Geographic (February 2010)
"Photographer Profile: Stephanie Sinclair"
—National Geographic (February 2010)
"Picturing Polygamy in America"
—NPR: The Picture Show (February 2010)
"POV: War Feels Like War Film Update"
—PBS (Premiered on July 6, 2004)
Stephanie Sinclair, Self-Immolation in Afghanistan: A Cry for Help, 2005. Digital print, dimensions variable. Collection of the artist; courtesy VII, New York
Installation view of Self-Immolation in Afghanistan: A Cry for Help, 2005 by Stephanie Sinclair. 2010, the Whitney Biennial (Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, February 25-May 30, 2010). Photograph by Sheldan C. Collins
