+ Bio

Ziba Rajabi (b.1988, Tehran, Iran) received her MFA from the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, and her BFA from the Sooreh University, Tehran. Her primary practice is focused on painting, drawing, and fabric-based installation. She is the recipient of the Jerome Fellowship for Early Career Artists by the Jerome Foundation and the Artist 360 Grant, a program sponsored by the Mid-America Arts Alliance. Her work has been included in a number of exhibitions, nationally and internationally, such as Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art; AR, CICA Museum; South Korea; Masur Museum; LA; 21C Museum, AR; Araan Gallery, Iran; The II Platform, UK, among many others. She has been an artist in residence at Vermont Studio Center, Terrain Residency, and Anderson Ranch Arts Center.

+ Artist Statement

As an Iranian female artist based in the US, my work revolves around the desire to reconcile my relationship with two distinctive spaces: Iran (my native land) and the US (where I reside now). In my paintings and installations, I re-create intimate moments culled from my home and neighborhood in Iran. Due to the situation where I am far away from my homeland, I can feel my memories of home fading away. By utilizing memories from my past, I take aspects of images that are no longer recognizable and, therefore, are abstracted into shapes that allude to elements found in my homeland. Consequently, aspects of everyday life such as architecture, furniture, gardens, or a specific time of day become the basis for my work. My desire is to create a situation where the viewer looks at abstract paintings or installations and feels a familiarity, but can’t quite place what it is or why they sense a kinship. By creating this kind of scenario, I can show that regardless of nationality, religion, or gender there are commonalities for all individuals.