Adrift

Press Release

In this edition of The Window Project, an installation of cyanotypes, titled “Adrift” by Aida Rad (b. 2001 Bandar Abbas, Iran) is on display.

"In the past, dhows and lighters played a vital role in the lives of southern Iranians, but with the shift in maritime trade, they were gradually removed from their traditional roles and identities. The project “Adrift” began as a reflection on this transformation—from tools of commerce to sentimental, tourist icons.
Industrialization and mass production reshaped the livelihoods of aging fishermen, leaving only mourning as a trace of their past. This work is an emotional reenactment of that loss, a recurring experience that has become a driving force in my life. Loss, like the sinking of broken ships, is heavy, dark, and cold.
“Adrift” is a farewell ritual for the dying, inspired by Japan’s Obon and southern Iran’s Nakhl-sozan and Bubo ceremonies. It confronts the historical identity of dhows, recovering traces of their shattered, burned, and dusted remnants. This evokes sorrow and regret over lost, impossible dreams—the repeated experience of voyaging."

- Aida Rad
Fall 2025