Kelidar_2 Photograph - Limited Edition of 10

Captured in this photograph is Amir Mohammad, a young boy whose eyes hold a maturity beyond his years. He sits on the ground, his legs crossed beneath him, framed by the modest interior of a room that hints at village life. Dressed in a sporty black jacket adorned with stripes, a stark contrast to the simplicity around him, he forms his hands into a heart shape—an emblem of his enduring optimism. Amir Mohammad's story is one of resilience and adaptability; a sixth-grader by age, he was compelled to repeat the fifth grade due to the absence of enough classmates to form a new class in his small village. In his mixed-gender classroom, where the girls sit separately at the back, he is one of the 16 students navigating their early education in a community where resources are sparse, but the will to learn thrives. There's a sweet smile that friends know well, one that didn’t make it into this photo, yet you can almost perceive it in the softness of his expression, the gentle curve of his mouth. It's the smile of a child who faces life’s curveballs with a silent strength, a testament to the spirit of the young ones in the rural heartlands of the world, where every day is a lesson in perseverance and hope. Location: Kelidar, Khorasan Province, Iran Copyright © 2018 Golnaz Jamsheed