Exhibition on Kurdish semi-nomadism held in Erbil citadel 

The exhibition shows ethnographic photos of Kurdish shepherds in the Kurdistan Region. 
A new exhibition is being held in Erbil Citadel on Kurdish nomadic life (Photo: Wladimir van Wilgenburg/Kurdistan 24)
A new exhibition is being held in Erbil Citadel on Kurdish nomadic life (Photo: Wladimir van Wilgenburg/Kurdistan 24)

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – The Institut français du Proche-Orient (Ifpo), in collaboration with the High Commission for the Erbil Citadel Revitalization (HCECR), opened a special exhibition on Kurdish semi-nomadism on Sunday. 

The exhibition shows ethnographic photos of Kurdish shepherds in the Kurdistan Region taken by French anthropologist Michael Thevenin. His work focuses on pastoral practices in the Middle East, the Caucasus, and Taurus. 

A new exhibition is being held in Erbil Citadel on Kurdish nomadic life (Photo: Wladimir van Wilgenburg/Kurdistan 24)
A new exhibition is being held in Erbil Citadel on Kurdish nomadic life (Photo: Wladimir van Wilgenburg/Kurdistan 24)

His displayed photographs were all taken as part of his Ph.D. project at the Institut français du Proche-Orient. For that project, he researched Kurdish shepherds and nomads in the Kurdistan Region between 2016 and 2018.

In the past, he also did research on nomadism in Armenia and southeast Turkey (Northern Kurdistan).

A new exhibition is being held in Erbil Citadel on Kurdish nomadic life (Photo: Wladimir van Wilgenburg/Kurdistan 24)
A new exhibition is being held in Erbil Citadel on Kurdish nomadic life (Photo: Wladimir van Wilgenburg/Kurdistan 24)

For his exhibition, Thevenin thanked “all the Kurds who helped him during his investigation: translators and veterinarians, academics and journalists, merchants and drivers.” 

“Above all, he thanks all the nomadic families who welcomed him, and who continue in difficult conditions these thousand-year-old practices which are an important part of Kurdish culture and human history.” 

A new exhibition is being held in Erbil Citadel on Kurdish nomadic life (Photo: Wladimir van Wilgenburg/Kurdistan 24)
A new exhibition is being held in Erbil Citadel on Kurdish nomadic life (Photo: Wladimir van Wilgenburg/Kurdistan 24)

In his opening seminar, Thevenin explained that it was difficult to explain to the Kurdish shepherds that he was researching sheep, goats, and their way of life and wasn’t merely a tourist who wanted to take photographs of Kurdish shepherds.

“I had to prove myself to the family to show I know a little bit about their life. I had to prove that I am a doctor(al) researcher” and not just another tourist, he said.

Thevenin said he hopes the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) takes an interest in the nomadic lifestyle, insisting that it must be preserved. 

A new exhibition is being held in Erbil Citadel on Kurdish nomadic life (Photo: Wladimir van Wilgenburg/Kurdistan 24)
A new exhibition is being held in Erbil Citadel on Kurdish nomadic life (Photo: Wladimir van Wilgenburg/Kurdistan 24)

“It is very important, and when you travel in the Kurdistan Region, everyone says nomads are so important for Kurdish culture,” he said. 

The exhibition, titled ‘Nomads and Traders Mobilities of Men, Mobilities of Animals in the Kurdistan Regional Governorate of Iraq’, will be held from Sunday, May 8, to Thursday, May 12, between 9 am and 5 pm at the Cultural Center of the Erbil Citadel.