Showcase Exhibition ― Beyond the Borders | Shakiba Sattar

My journey as an artist has been one of movement across lands, cultures, and realities. I was born in Iran and now create in Canada, living between two worlds, each of which shapes my identity and art. “Beyond Borders” reflects this borderland space, where the self is torn between memories of home and the search for freedom.

My portrait paintings depict fragmented identities, ambiguous emotions, and the tension between belonging and forgetting. Through each brushstroke, I navigate the unseen lines that separate and connect us, challenging the physical and psychological boundaries that define our existence.

Existence as an Iranian woman is an act of endurance. I focus on portraits that en- compass the most intense human emotions: love, fear, and joy. These figures exist in a state of rebellion, traversing the path of embodiment while simultaneously express- ing turmoil and anxiety. Through interlocking shapes and repetitive movements of identical limbs, the physical body becomes a metaphor – a vessel for freedom and unresolved concerns.

My art is a testament to this being – not just survival, but the deep, raw, evolving reality of being. Through abstract and surreal portraits, I explore themes of identity, repression and transformation. Faces fade, features distort, but essence remains – a symbol of the resilience of those who refuse to disappear.

Being is about presence in a world that often seeks to erase it, about claiming space through art when society dictates otherwise. My work serves as a reminder: I am here, I exist, and so do my stories.

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