Image: We are excited to announce that Afghan-German visual artist and writer, Moshtari Hilal, will be visiting UGA on Wednesday, March 19th for a reading and discussion related to her book Ugliness ! "Moshtari Hilal, an Afghan-born author and artist who lives in Germany, has written a touching, intimate, and highly political book. Dense body hair, crooked teeth, and big noses: Hilal uses a broad cultural lens to question norms of appearance—ostensibly her own, but in fact everyone’s. She writes about beauty salons in Kabul as a backdrop to the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan, Darwin’s theory of evolution, Kim Kardashian, and a utopian place in the shadow of her nose. With a profound mix of essay, poetry, her own drawings, and cultural and social history of the body, Hilal explores notions of repulsion and attraction, taking the reader into the most personal of realms to put self-image to the test. Why are we afraid of ugliness?" -From her publisher, New Vessel Press "A sweeping meditation on a subject rarely addressed...Hilal takes on our beauty-worshipping celebrity culture and the beauty industry for...keeping women in an expensive prison of self-doubt...Ugliness makes a 'big picture' argument, panning outward from one young woman’s life to some of the largest issues we confront globally — hence to all of our lives.”—The New York Times -You can read more about her art in this NYT feature -Click here to read an interview from Scottish art and culture magazine, The Skinny Itinerary 10:30 AM - Coffee Meet and Greet (in German)Joe Brown Hall Lobby 11:30 AM - Conversation with International StudentsJoe Brown Hall Lobby 12:30 PM - Artist Talk and ReadingFine Arts 400 For more information, please contact Dr. Berna Gueneli (berna.gueneli@uga.edu) Thank you to our co-sponsors and contributors: Wilson Center for Humanities and Arts Office of Global Engagement Creative Writing Program Lamar Dodd School of Art Postcolonial Collective Hasko IDC Funds
