Common Memories

Military service is compulsory for young men in Iran, and it leaves a lasting shared memory. Babak Kazemi did his in 2009, a year of great unrest, under orders he could neither question nor escape. During that time he photographed small moments of freedom. He later worked on the prints with oil, heat and metal, leaving burns, scars and blisters that evoke the fatigue and inner wounds of all who went through the same experience.