Nurieh Mozaffari
Nurieh Mozaffari was born in Iran. She started her academic training in painting at age 18, embarking on a bachelor’s degree majoring in art in Iran. Later, she completed a master’s degree in painting at Art University in 1996. Teaching in the faculty of art at a university was a natural next step. In between and subsequent to her studies, her work has appeared in many exhibitions, both joint and solo. When she moved to Canada in 1998, Nurieh pursued a diploma in jewelry design in Vancouver, BC. The program pushed her to expand her perspective of the world and allowed her to express herself three dimensionally. She has always drawn from her cultural heritage to complement her creations.
Nurieh's work has been exhibited internationally since 1984. She has had twenty solo exhibitions and more than a hundred group exhibitions. Her works have been exhibited in the Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art; Sad Abod Museum, Tehran; Nivran Museum, Tehran; Shohada Museum, Tehran; Azadi Museum, Tehran; Pacific Mineral Museum, Vancouver; Institut du Monde Arabe (solo exhibition), Paris; Galerie Daniel Besseiche, Paris; Galerie Daniel Besseiche, Geneva; Art Miami, New York, NY; Parish Gallery, Washington, DC; French Embassy, Washington, DC; and Susan Calloway Fine Arts, Washington, DC, among others. She has won numerous awards including from the Federation of Canadian Artists 2005; Bahman Cultural Center, Tehran 1996; Ebne-Sina Cultural Center, Tehran 1996; Empress Farah Pahlavi, Washington, DC; Peugeot family, Paris France, Municipality of West Vancouver, West Vancouver Canada; and District of West Vancouver Art Inventory Collection. Nurieh says she can’t imagine her life without painting. Her work gives her a strong sense of self and allows her to share her innermost truth with those around her. She lives and travels between US, Canada, and Europe.
ARTIST STATEMENT
I try to capture my emotions and my perceptions through the simplicity of shape, the harmony of color, and the paradox of light and dark. My paintings are symbolic of my interpretation of life, of my love of what is natural and true. Often what I find in the images is an opening—a possibility space, but that same space may be shrouded by what is seemingly impossible. I am intrigued by this combination and believe that when we look consciously—whether at humans, objects or landscape—we see no separation among them. Form is interesting, but it represents only a general sense of subject. My work has shown me that there is so much more to discover beyond the restriction of form and I strive to be true to that knowing. I often listen to Iranian classical music or read poetry for inspiration. The undulating rhythm of the music or words imprints on my sub-conscious, leading me in many directions. I let my mind and body merge with the music and my spirit guides me to the places I need to go. Textures and impressions appear on the canvas and from these compositions, I then have a mirror for my next step. The journey is never ending.