Women of the Thar Desert

Karen Cox is an award-winning photographer who works both in Ireland and internationally. Her work spans documentary photography and photojournalism to record both known and untold visual narratives. Her photos have appeared in The New York Times, The Guardian, Rolling Stone, Reuters among others and also feature regularly in Irish publications. She continues to show her work in exhibitions globally.

As part of a documentary photography project in September 2022, Karen was commissioned to spend time in the Thar Desert in India documenting the lives of the women of the desert. For the women and girls of the Thar Desert in Rajasthan in North West India, the daily challenges are many and the basic need for water dominates all else. An inhospitable environment, extreme temperatures, distances to water supplies, access to food, education and medical care continue to be constant obstacles. Most of the women of the Thar Desert are from the lowest castes in the Hindu social hierarchy and can be victims of physical and sexual abuse. Clean water and sustainability are essential and education is key to the empowerment and survival of the desert women. Nothing is easy yet these women show incredible courage and resilience.