Traumas are the dark and bitter parts of our lives and talking about them is always included by pain and suffering. The way we face our traumas varies: crying, anger, shouting, staying silent, or even laughing.
I grew up in the country (Iran) where trauma was an inseparable part of my life, and painting because my way of confronting it. I would paint my anger and fears born from trauma, and through that, I found release. Over time, the images grew more violent 'The oppressive atmosphere of the country and the misogynistic Islamic teachings left me with no other way but to be angry. I took revenge on my trauma by drawing their violence.
But somehow, the violence that survived within me would't care of it until others pointed it out to me. At first, I denied it & even flirt with a sense of irony. How strange! This response was completely involuntary, and that made it valuable to me. It's as if this hidden humor has been set into my illustrations with an invisible needle.
It's a constant challenge for me to explore how far I can take this surreal combination of humor and trauma in my illustrations. Could this subtle humor reduce the ugliness of violence? Does this contradiction risk distort the message I intend to convey to my audience? Either way, I continue in search of the answers.
Photo credits: Sisters Lumière/ @sisters_lumiere
Absorption, acrylic on paper
Balbasho (Persian for chaos), paper, marks
The work in pictures.