Intersected Identity , 2023
Medium: Mixed Media and Found Object
This installation is a deeply personal, psychological map of displacement and bicultural identity. Created upon the artist’s arrival in the U.S., the work explores the profound vulnerability of navigating a new landscape and seeking connection within an unfamiliar community.
The central figure—a doll marked with both Farsi and English text—embodies the psyche of a defenseless "newborn," reaching out with the quiet plea, “Wanna Play?” The surrounding space contrasts two worlds: the Right Wall, featuring a Persian miniature and a blocked mirror, represents the private, inaccessible world of the artist’s Iranian heritage. Conversely, the Left Wall displays images of the new environment (Athens, Ohio), filtered by emotional doodles. A transparent mirror here invites the viewer to reflect on their own presence within the community witnessing this transition.
The installation utilizes mixed media and found objects to frame identity not as a static origin point, but as a continuous, emotionally fraught negotiation between two distant places.
This morphing animation is the digital counterpart to my installation, Intersected Identity. The shifting visuals trace a powerful internal journey: the rapid transition from the mature, in-control identity I held back home, to the vulnerable, lost "newborn" self in a new country. It visualizes the challenging reality of starting over.
Dripping Red, 2024
Medium: Found Objects and Play-Doh
This sculpture is a direct, provocative commentary on the devastating impact of war and systemic conflict on innocent life. Using found objects and Play-Doh, the materials mimic a child's construction, intentionally juxtaposing the perceived simplicity of a child's world with the horrific complexity of geopolitical violence.
At the center, a defenseless fetal figure rests in a pool of blood that spills uncontrollably down the pedestal, symbolizing how the trauma of war spreads and contaminates everything in its path. Surrounding the figure, toy soldiers wear executioner hoods, representing the dehumanization required for violent acts; by hiding their identities and pointing blame at one another, they become anonymous killing agents stripped of humanity and responsibility.
Dripping Red forces the viewer to confront the stark reality of innocence destroyed, highlighting the destructive nature of conflict that is often obscured or made abstract by political rhetoric.
The Journey of the Self, 2024
Medium: Found Objects, Clay, Play-Doh, Digital Illustration, and Print Installation
This experimental installation is a miniature, surreal world. It uses the language of play to explore fundamental questions about life's journey, identity, and inner thoughts. By resisting a single fixed meaning, the artwork invites the viewer to look inward. Interactive elements, including a mirror and a handmade journal, directly encourage the audience to engage in personal self-discovery and introspective questioning.
The entire piece functions as a segmented visual narrative, beginning with the egg—representing potential and the genesis of birth—resting on a small chair. The path forward is traced by a stylized staircase leading the eye toward a feather, symbolizing a structured life cycle and transcendence. Self-discovery, the work's central theme, is embodied by a monkey figure pausing for self-reflection at a mirror. Yet, the inherent precariousness of existence is acknowledged through a hand-held chair positioned unstably. The installation culminates with a unique, handmade book of journaling promptsand a mirror, ultimately inviting the viewer to move beyond observation and engage in an active, introspective exploration of their own unstable, complex journey of the self.
