Asian Geographic 3 - 2016 SG

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or animal that is believed by a particular society to have
spiritual significance and that is adopted by it as an
emblem” is a series of 14 black and white portraits of
Malaysian women dressed in their traditional costumes,
from Malay to Chinese to Indian, Iban and Kadazan.
“I named it Totem because a totem is an emblem
and the identity of a village,” Diana explains. “It can
be an animal or a natural object, but it represents the
strength of a village. I felt it was a symbolic title for
women in Malaysia and their identities, which are so
rich and complex.”
Diana explores the ancient ritual of adorning women
with symbolic clothing, religious objects, amulets and
heirloom jewellery. Her purpose is to fuse the past
and the present, the traditional and the modern, and

to effectively create new possibilities of defining a

woman’s identity.

“It was during my time in UCLA that I started

to explore this concept of identity, nudity and how

wearing disguises and different layers can make you

act differently,” she recalls. “For example, you’ll find

that if a girl is wearing a miniskirt, she may talk and act

differently around men.”

“I also photographed women nude, in order to

explore the question if a woman’s body is really hers.

Who are we really on the inside without our clothes

and style? Is a woman’s identity imposed by society?

Is it tied to the way society sees us and expects of us,

which obliges us to dress and act in a certain way and to

mould us into a system?”

FaR leFt Law student
Mahbouba wears a wedding
costume from Ksar Hellal
(The Hidden Body, 2013)

below Hadhemi wears a

draped fabric from Djerba

woven with a silk thread (The

Hidden Body, 2013)

leFt Tunisia’s North

African culture is rich with

Mediterranean heritage (The

Hidden Body, 2013)

RiGht Mouna wears a

wedding costume from “the

third day” from Raf Raf (The

Hidden Body, 2013)