Laetitia El Hakim

“Domestication (from the Latin domus,“house”) is the action that man exertson animals or plants, if only by raisingor cultivating them. By appropriatingthem and using them for his pleasureor the satisfaction of his needs, mantransforms them.”

In Lebanon, like almost everywhere inthe world, women are still consideredsecond-class citizens, and we are stillfighting today for our most basic rights(custody rights, the right to giveLebanese nationality our children, theright to abortion...). Every ounce offreedom a woman gets seems to havebeen borrowed, not given. Oppressivebehaviors against women are mainlydue to the religious and sectarianstates that govern the country. Lawsprotecting women and guaranteeingthat they can act on their own moraland physical entity are oftenoverlooked and ignored so as not todisrupt the status quo that exists today.

For almost 30 years now, my motherhas compiled a cookbook with recipesborrowed from friends. Throughout mylife, she has shown a total lack ofinterest for cooking. In response to herindifference, my father took over thekitchen. This shift in dynamics in ourhousehold, which was a normal sightfor me, raised a lot of questions fromour surrounding because of theanomaly of this role reversal in oursociety. My father was never attachedto a recipe. He has always evolvedfreely in the kitchen, manipulating theingredients according to his desires.On the other hand, my mother wasnever able to cook without relying onher "borrowed" recipe book.

This project leans on the "borrowedrecipes" as a trigger for reflection,attempting to dismantle the limits,guidelines and rules set by instructionsand ingredients. 

Domestica (f.) is a work in threechapters that explores thedomestication of women through thebody (Myths), knowledge (Witches),and being (Women). The firstinstallation of the work is in the form ofan artist's book which presents theideas that will be explored in a more in-depth way through the chapters. 

To view the entire project, please send an email.