Anahid Ghorbani

-In what way is ART a tool for activism?

Artists find ways to tell stories that visually represent issues of oppression, restriction of rights, or invisibility. Ultimately, artworks generate dialogue and help people to understand we are all the same race called humanity. Artists want the viewer to not just understand the outrage, but to also inspire people to begin to think in new, more inclusive ways and reach across these divides.

-In what way does your chosen piece for HRW reflect 2020?

My photography is engaged with social issues such as the oppression of women and denial of identity, and, ultimately, my goal is to engage, inform, and invite dialogue around human rights. By exploring this issue in an artistic medium, I found I moved beyond just being an observer by creating metaphors that I have found more often speak to the heart than a document. I find I am inviting the audience into layers of meaning by using these metaphors and create forums for open discussion around these issues. My emphasis is on the color black as a visual metaphor since black suppresses and obscures the individual and indicates the absence of light. I use both barren landscapes to represent a sense of powerlessness well as water as symbolic pathways to escape to freedom. I strongly feel that the focus of my work is more important than ever because of the current cultural climate that is threatening marginalized people and pushing them underground.

-What gives you hope?

With my work, what gives me hope is to open the door of discussion about the oppression of women around the globe. Though my work may seem Iran-centric and specific, I hope that in the future it will be a source for expression directed toward shining a light on the struggle for the equality of women everywhere.

BIO

Anahid Ghorbani received her MFA in Photography from Columbia College Chicago in 2017 and her BA in 2012 from Tehran University of Art in Iran. Engaged with creating site-specific installations that utilize photography and video, her goal is to engage, inform and invite dialogue around human rights. Her work has been included in a number of exhibitions, nationally and internationally. She is the recipient of the Graduate Merit Award, the Albert P. Weisman Award and the Diane Dammeyer Fellowship in Photographic Arts and Social Issues. Most recently she won the Video Art First Award during the Khorshid Independent Film Festival in Tehran, Iran for her artwork The Color is Black that addresses female oppression and denial of identity.

Anahid Ghorbani was nominated to 20 21 Artists in Support of Human Rights Watch by Artist Arno Rafael Minkkinen.

anahidghorbani.com Instagram: @anahid.ghorbani

This artwork is unframed and located in Chicago, USA. WILLAS contemporary will facilitate artwork release within 21 days after payment. Can be picked up by the buyer or shipped at the buyer´s expense.