I Was About To Be Them/There
December 13, 2023 - December 21, 2023
Hoorieh Rajabzadeh
Master of Fine Arts Graduate Exhibition
Reception
Thursday December 14, 5 — 7 pm
Artist’s Statement
This exhibition consists of videos of performances, an audio/video installation, and a photograph, through which I convey the experience of being subject to external forces that shape my behaviour, thoughts, and emotions.
This work offers a metaphoric perspective on my experiences as an Iranian woman and resonates with the experiences of many other women in our homeland. I aim to share the confusion and paradox that arise from existing in two distinct worlds - here in Regina, tied to Iran - while my loved ones face imminent danger in Iran.
I have experienced the simultaneous sensation of being distant from and yet incredibly close to the events unfolding in my country in 2022 and 2023.
I Was About to Be Them/There serves as a medium for conveying this bewildering duality and the peril that threatens those dear to me.
Biography
Hooria Rajabzadeh is an Iranian lens-based artist whose practice is primarily focused on notions of gender and gender imbalances within the intersection of culture and race, often remarking on her and other Iranian women's lived experiences. She has a Bachelor's and Master of Photography from the University of Tehran, Iran. I Was About to Be Them/There is the graduating exhibition for her MFA in Visual Arts at the University of Regina.
