Dramatic protests in Iran over women’s rights are the subject of a show at Leon Gallery

There is a lot to see in the series of photographs currently on display at Denver’s Leon Gallery: dramatic scenes of civil rights protests that took place in Iran last year; the defiant posturing of activists standing tall amidst chaos; the fires and the flowers that appeared at different times on the streets, alternately signifying anger and hope.

But it might be what you don’t see in these pictures, and what you can’t know about them, that tells a deeper story. There are few actual faces visible in the images, and the colorful, action-packed prints hung on the walls are all unsigned. Both the subjects here, and the photographers themselves, are compelled to remain anonymous. The situation continues to be dangerous for these 21st-century revolutionaries.

The exhibition “Woman! Life! Freedom!” borrows its title from the three-word slogan that became the rallying cry of the protesters who took to public spaces across the country starting in September 2022, and it was arranged by a U.S.-based organization called the Middle East Images Foundation. The nonprofit supports photographers in conflict zones, arming them with practical assistance and connecting photographers on the ground with news outlets across the globe that might publish their work and help them earn a living.

“Woman! Life! Freedom!” brings together images created by seven of these shooters who ventured into the fray attempting to document the drama that unfolded during that time. They show a combination of turmoil and tragedy, and — in every frame — the bravery of opponents to a powerful ruling regime who responded to their actions with violence and persecution. According to news reports and watch groups, more than 500 civilians were killed during the protests, and many more were injured. As many as 20,000 were arrested and some were quickly executed by authorities. The crackdown was brutal.

The photos present a comprehensive portrait of the resolve that lead people into the streets, a movement that began after the death of Mahsa Jina Amini, a 22-year-old Kurdish Muslim who was visiting the country with her family. Amini was arrested by the “morality police” for violating the hajib code. She died two days later in a Tehran hospital.

Police said she had a stroke, but many in the public believed she was beaten and fatally injured during interrogation.

As international news accounts vividly showed at the time, the protests were notable in the fact that women were at the forefront of the actions demanding civil rights. But scores of men joined their cause, expanding it from a women’s rights issue to a call for greater freedoms all around.

Female warriors are at the center of the photos in “Woman! Life! Freedom!.” They stand defiantly in danger zones, with their fists held high, surrounded by debris and black smoke emanating from fires set in automobile tires, and among the weapons of this sort of warfare, rocks and bricks and cans of spray paint used to write the slogans of militancy.

There is a distinct point of view to these pictures. In many cases, the photographers seem to position themselves behind the protesters rather than in front of them, or in spots that place them among the throngs. It is as if they are accompanying these fighters into battle rather than confronting them as witnesses to the event. There is almost no presence of the security forces, with their weapons and gear, who were very much a part of these scenes.

That can make these photos a challenge to viewers who have to decide how to approach the exhibition. In one sense, it is an exercise in photojournalism: These are on-the-ground shots and some have appeared in respected news outlets where we expect the reporting to be unbiased. At the same time, the way they are presented here — from the protesters’ point of view — instills them with an anti-government agenda. As a group, they have the emotional impact of building support for the forces that acted in opposition to the rulers of Iran. That is not a bad thing — who, in the West, does not stand for civil liberties and against authoritarianism? — but it is important context for experiencing this exhibition.

The images succeed by laying out their evidence in real-world terms. These protesters stared down extreme peril, and with fearless resolve. In one particularly evocative photo, a group of protesters have gathered behind a brick barrier set up on a street in the city of Mahabad in the province of West Azerbaijan. It is difficult to know exactly what is occurring but they seem to be waiting, boldly, for some response from the authorities. As with many of these photos, we see only the backs of their heads and the enemy is not visible in the frame.

But their defiance is brash. Their spines are straight and their fingers are fixed into the “V” of a peace sign. It is one of those small photos, apparently taken in an instant, that tells a large and sweeping story, and underscores just how powerful the medium can be. This is photography not as an art form — even though this show is in a well-established art gallery — but as a tool for information and social change.