Our Current Team

  • A black-and-white photo of Raz Xaidan captured by Nahwand Jaff.

    Raz Xaidan - founder & Creative

    Raz Xaidan is a Kurdish multidisciplinary artist, photographer, archivist, and curator. Through photography, digital media, and archival practice, she explores themes of memory, identity, and matriarchal resistance. She spent the best part of a decade based in Kurdistan, working closely with local communities to explore creative and archival practices, and initiating projects that were often the first of their kind in the region. Founder of The Darling Beast and The Jiyan Archives, her work centres on Kurdish women’s narratives, blending art and archives to preserve cultural heritage and amplify Kurdish female voices.

    www.razxaidan.com

  • A woman with shoulder-length hair smiling, standing outdoors with trees and a bridge in the background, wearing a light-colored blouse and a watch on her left wrist.

    Şînda Ekrem - Writer & Researcher

    Şînda Ekrem is a Kurdish journalist and media producer with over a decade of experience. Since the onset of the crises in northeast Syria, she has been actively reporting on the situation. As a co-founder of a female-led initiative in Rojava, she has greatly influenced media storytelling. Her roles include program planner at WAR-TV, video editor for the Atyaf platform of the Syrian Women's Media Network, and director and voice-over artist for children's films on the Ara Zerok Children's Channel. At Çira TV, she focuses on impactful social programs for Êzidî women and reports on significant issues in Syria and Rojava, including the fight against ISIS and the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Previously, she worked with Hawar News Agency, Firat News Agency, and Ronahi TV, where she created content addressing social issues for women.

  • A woman with long, wavy hair smiling, wearing a dark top, hoop earrings, and a necklace with a heart-shaped pendant, standing against a plain background.

    Dr. Chero Eliassi - Researcher

    Chero Eliassi is a landscape architect, researcher, and architectural historian. She recently completed her PhD at the School of Architecture at KTH in Stockholm. Her work examines archives and landscapes across multiple scales, uncovering overlooked socio-political histories of people and places. Among her projects, she has collaborated with the Kurdish Library in Stockholm to trace and foreground Kurdish diaspora narratives in Sweden and beyond.

Built with contributions from…

  • Black and white portrait of a woman with dark hair, eyes, and makeup, wearing a dark top and earrings.

    Hana Ibrahim - Writer & Translator

  • A black and white photo of a young woman sitting on the floor in a room, with dark curly hair styled in a messy bun, wearing a light-colored jacket with patches, earrings, and makeup with winged eyeliner.

    Gabriela Farah - Archive Researcher

  • Black and white photo of a young woman with curly hair, smiling, wearing a patterned scarf and dark top, standing against a plain wall.

    Hêlîn Öğüt- Writer & Researcher

  • A woman with wavy hair and a serious expression, wearing a patterned blouse, outdoors with trees and grass in the background.

    Layal Shakir - Translator

  • Black and white photo of a woman with long dark hair, smiling at the camera.

    Xoshink - Translator

  • Black and white portrait of a woman with long, wavy dark hair, wearing a collared shirt, looking at the camera with a slight smile, against a plain background.

    Sara Easa - Writer & Researcher

  • Black and white portrait of a young woman with curly hair wearing a beaded necklace and a pendant, looking directly at the camera.

    Shang Saleh - Writer

  • A young woman with long dark hair and glasses sitting at an outdoor table near a body of water, smiling at the camera.

    Dalal hassane

  • A young woman with long curly hair, wearing a headband and earrings, smiling while leaning against a brick wall outdoors.

    Rojbîn Arjen - Writer

  • A woman with long hair wearing a hat, outdoors in sunlight, black and white photo.

    Peri-Khan Aqrawi-Whitcomb - Writer & Researcher

write with us…

We are always open to public contributions for written pieces. Propose your idea and tell us what you’d like to contribute via email - contact@thejiyanarchives.com

Raz Xaidan is taking a photograph of a Sinemxan Bedirxan sitting on a blue armchair, reading a photo album in a living room decorated with framed pictures and certificates on the wall.
A woman holding a large bouquet of flowers and a black Godox photography reflector bag stands near a glass door, with another woman wearing sunglasses and a face mask in the background inside a room with beige walls and white furniture.
Two people are looking at photographs and books on a wooden bookshelf, one person with glasses and a black watch, the other wearing a patterned long-sleeve shirt.