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Sanaz Mazinani

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Sanaz Mazinani
ساناز مزینانی
Born1978 (age 45–46)
Tehran, Iran
EducationOCAD University,
Stanford University
Known forVisual art, installation art, photography, public art
Notable workAn Impossible Perspective,
Threshold,
Dastgāh,
All that melts,
Iran Revisited
MovementContemporary Art
AwardsToronto Friends of the Visual Arts (2024),
Americans for the Arts: Best Public Art Award (2014),
Kala Art Institute fellowship (2012)
Websitesanazmazinani.com

Sanaz Mazinani (born 1978) is an Iranian–born Canadian multidisciplinary visual artist, curator, and educator, known for her photography and installation art. She is currently based in Toronto, Canada.

Biography

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Early life

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Mazinani was born in Tehran, Iran in 1978, one year prior to the Iranian Revolution.[1][2] Her brother is artist Mani Mazinani.[3][4] She immigrated to Canada at the age of 11.[1] While in Canada, Mazinani studied at the Ontario College of Art and Design (currently known as OCAD University), where she graduated in 2003. She later moved to the United States in 2009. She received her Master of Fine Arts at Stanford University in 2011.[5]

Artwork

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Throughout her practice, Sanaz Mazinani has produced an interconnected body of work. From the early stages, Mazinani has been concerned with two different but connected aspects of the image; the construction of images, and our mediated notion of the world through the constructed image. A Study in the Vertical (2002–2003) is an example of an early attempt at understanding the medium of photography and the production of images. In this work without the use of a negative she exposes the photographic colour paper to light using an enlarger in the darkroom. The results are camera-less abstract images without referents. In her later bodies of work Mazinani has continued asking the viewer to consider how the image is made and represented.

Mazinani's sensibility towards war, how we come to understand conflict and its politics through images and media has resulted in numerous works where she uses pre-existing, archival, and found images to digitally produce abstractions that without attentive observation would appear as ornamentations seen in Islamic art and architecture. Room for Disruption (2011) is an installation made of various components and not limited to the printed photograph; incorporating video, wallpaper, and sculptural elements mixed with images. She creates wall mounted photographic sculptures that protrude and in turn bend our field of vision. These structures usually provide both a central point inviting the audience to look closer, and an expanding geometric field that requires engagement from afar. Making visual juxtapositions, Mazinani challenges the viewer to look at photographs differently. This is best exemplified in Frames of the Visible (2011–2013) produced entirely by images gathered from online media sources. These works often collocate images from opposing political poles in an attempt to question our understanding of conflict, military censorship, circulation and proliferation of information. For instance, when observing one of the pieces from a distance it is physically reminiscent of an aircraft and at the same time that of an Islamic ornamentation.[6] Once looked at closely one realizes that it is a constellation of two images mirrored, cropped, and repeated in various orientations; a propaganda image of an armed Muslim woman with Hamas banners placed beside an image of a U.S.A. military pilot inspecting a fighter jet.

Mazinani's structuralist approach can be seen as an attempt to scrutinize media by subverting how one perceives images. As characterized in When We Start to Love War (2010), many of her works borrow images that have been filtered through Western sources, but nevertheless are all symptomatic of the East-West dichotomy. Through this methodological approach Mazinani's installations speak back to the dizzying politics behind the global use/abuse of the instrumental visual language of images and simultaneously enable the viewer to be a part of this dialogue.[7]

Notable projects include: Bay Area Activism, 2013;[8] Site, Sight, and Insight, 2013;[9] Conference of the Birds, 2012;[10][11] Frames of the Visible, 2011–2013;[12] Room for Disruption, 2011; When We Start to Love War, 2010; Iran Revisited, 1999–2013.[13][14][15]

Unfolding Images, published by Bulger Gallery Press in April 2012 and co-authored by Jeremiah Barber, David Fresko and Mohammadreza Mirzaei.

Exhibitions

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Mazinani's art works have been included in numerous exhibitions throughout North America, Europe, and Asia. Her most recent solo exhibitions include From Elsewhere to Here at the McIntosh Gallery, University of Western Ontario, in London, ON (2024) and An Impossible Perspective at Stephen Bulger Gallery in Toronto, ON (2023).[16] Notable group exhibitions include Light: Visionary Perspectives at the Aga Khan Museum (2024-2025)[17], We Are Story: The Canada Now Photography Acquisition[18] at the Art Gallery of Ontario (2023), Twisted Sisters: Reimagining Urban Portraiture at the Museum Bärengasse, Zurich, Switzerland and San Francisco City Hall. Organized by the San Francisco Arts Commission and curated by Alexandra Blättler and San Francisco Arts Commission Gallery Director, Meg Shiffler;[19] Magic of Persia Contemporary Art Prize 2013 Exhibition at the Emirates Financial Towers in Dubai, United Arab Emirates;[20] Sarai Reader 09 Festival, New Delhi, India[21] Border Cultures, curated by Srimoyee Mitra at the Art Gallery of Windsor, Windsor, Canada, which won the Ontario Association of Art Galleries exhibit of the year award;[22][23] Shadow Puppets: Traces of New Documentary Practices at the Welch School Galleries, curated by Jill Frank and Stephanie Dowda for the Georgia State University;[24] and Occupy Bay Area, at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco, California;[25] Signal to Noise, SF Camerawork, San Francisco, California.[26]

Significant solo exhibitions include: Sight, Site, and Insight at Gallery 44 Center for Contemporary Photography in 2013 which was accompanied by an exhibition catalogue written by Rosemary Heather;[7] Celebrating Bay Area Activism, a series of six photo-collage works installed in 36 bus kiosks along Market Street in San Francisco, as part of the SFAC Art on Market Street Public Art program;[27] Frames of the Visible in 2012 at Stephen Bulger Gallery in Toronto, Canada, as a featured exhibition in the Scotiabank CONTACT Photography Festival,[28] and U.S.A.I.R.A.N (2014), a public art installation that activates a vacant space by covering all its windows with a set of twenty-one digital montages;[29]Signal to Noise in 2017 at the San Francisco Camerawork Gallery in San Francisco, California;[30] Light Times in 2019 at both the Stephen Bulger Gallery, and the Triton Museum of Art in Santa Clara, California.[31]

Awards

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Mazinani has been awarded grants from the Canada Council (2013), the San Francisco Arts Commission Cultural Equity Grant (2013),[32] as well as awards from Stanford University, Ontario Arts Council, and the Toronto Arts Council for the development and creation of her projects. Mazinani was named a 2012 Kala Art Institute Fellow.[33] She was awarded the SFAC Art on Market Street commission for the project Celebrating Bay Area Activism.[34]

Curation

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Mazinani's curatorial projects include and exhibition and site-specific installation in 2011[35] and three exhibitions in 2013 for the Tirgan biennial festival in Toronto.[36] These included Made in China, an outdoor art installation by Tehran-based artist Negar Farajiani,[37] Hope Echoed, an exhibition of portraits of Iranian women by Toronto's lively arts community,[38] and The Third Space, a three-month exhibition featuring works by six Iranian artists held at the York Quay Gallery in Toronto's Harbourfront Centre[39] The exhibition focused on the hybrid identities that result from life in the diaspora and received much acclaim.[40]

Other curatorial projects have included, Visions of Eternity (2011), including works by Abbas Akhavan, Reza Derakshani, Parastou Forouhar, Oldouz Moslemian, Taimaz Moslemian, Nasser Ovissi, Hamed Sahihi, Soody Sharifi, and Ali Soltani;[41] New Constellations: Contemporary Iranian Video Art, with colleague Amirali Ghasemi;[42] Off World, an interactive site-specific outdoor installation with Andrew Mallis and Mateo Guez, and ALMANAC: An Index of Current Work and Thought, a collaborative publication addressing the relationship between theory and practice,[43] The Death of Photography (Bulger Gallery Press, 2008).[44]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b Whiting, Sam (September 5, 2013). "S.F. bus stop art takes us back in history". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved June 10, 2014.
  2. ^ Curiel, Jonathan (November 6, 2013). "Infinite Regress: Two Iranian Artists Multiply Their Spiritual Images". SF Weekly.
  3. ^ McMurtrie, John (February 1, 2017). "Trump order affects Iranian artist's show critical of his image". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved February 10, 2022.
  4. ^ Collins, Leah (February 10, 2017). "Immigrant memories inspired these siblings' art collab — then the travel ban nearly tore them apart". CBC Arts.
  5. ^ "Sanaz Mazinani, Department of Art & Art History". Stanford University. 2015. Retrieved April 15, 2015.
  6. ^ ""Frames of the Visible" Exhibition Press Release". Stephen Bulger Gallery. June 9, 2012. Retrieved June 10, 2014.
  7. ^ a b "Site, Sight, and Insight". Gallery 44. Archived from the original on February 22, 2014. Retrieved June 10, 2014.
  8. ^ "Sanaz Mazinani". Art on Market St. Retrieved June 10, 2014.
  9. ^ "Site, Sight, and Insight". Gallery 44. Archived from the original on February 22, 2014. Retrieved June 10, 2014.
  10. ^ Garcia, Nancy (May 13, 2014). "Arab Spring and Occupy Oakland Fuse in Sanaz Mazinani's "Conference of the Birds"". 7x7.
  11. ^ Lau, Charlene K. (May 10, 2012). "Public: Big Ambitions". Canadian Art. Retrieved June 10, 2014.
  12. ^ "Sanaz Mazinani: Frames of the Visible". Taymour Grahne Gallery. Retrieved June 10, 2014.
  13. ^ "Sanaz Mazinani". En Foco. Archived from the original on December 26, 2012. Retrieved June 10, 2014.
  14. ^ Magdaleno, Johnny (April 17, 2014). "Sanaz Mazinani Warps War Photography into Kaleidoscopic Collages". The Creators Project.
  15. ^ "Uncovering the Many Faces of Iran: Sanaz Mazinani". Border Crossings. No. 108. December 2008.
  16. ^ Smart, Mason. "An Impossible Perspective Review". C Magazine. C Magazine. Retrieved October 29, 2024.
  17. ^ "Art Guide, Light: Visionary Perspectives". Art Forum. Retrieved November 28, 2024.
  18. ^ "We Are Story Press Release". AGO. Retrieved November 28, 2024.
  19. ^ "TWISTED SISTERS: Reimaging Urban Portraiture | SFAC Galleries". Sfartscommission.org. May 13, 2013. Archived from the original on June 2, 2016. Retrieved June 10, 2014.
  20. ^ "Magic of Persia – Contemporary Art Prize – Shortlist 2013 – Artists". Mopcap.com. October 7, 2012. Archived from the original on October 22, 2013. Retrieved June 10, 2014.
  21. ^ "s a r a i". s a r a i. Retrieved June 10, 2014.
  22. ^ "Border Cultures – Art Gallery of Windsor". agw.ca. Retrieved June 24, 2014.
  23. ^ "AGW's Mitra wins provincial accolades". windsorstar.com. Retrieved June 24, 2014.
  24. ^ Art Design. "Review: Through lens of war, GSU's "Shadow Puppets" expands meaning of "documentary"". ArtsATL. Retrieved June 10, 2014.
  25. ^ "Occupy Bay Area". YBCA. Retrieved June 10, 2014.
  26. ^ "Current Exhibition". SF Camerawork. Retrieved April 24, 2017.
  27. ^ Wiener, Anna (October 17, 2013). "Sanaz Mazinani, In Between: The Art of Diaspora". Medium.
  28. ^ CONTACT photography festival. "Scotiabank CONTACT Photography FestivalFrames of the Visible". 2012.scotiabankcontactphoto.com. Archived from the original on October 3, 2013. Retrieved June 10, 2014.
  29. ^ Anania, As told to Katie. "Sanaz Mazinani talks about her installation U.S.A.I.R.A.N." artforum.com. Retrieved April 24, 2017.
  30. ^ Sanaz Mazinani: Signal to Noise. SF Camerawork. 2018. ISBN 978-0-9988019-2-6.
  31. ^ sanazmazinani.com. "CV". Sanaz Mazinani. Retrieved March 1, 2019.
  32. ^ "Cultural Equity Grants FY 2012–2013" (PDF). sfartscommission.org. Retrieved June 24, 2014.
  33. ^ "Residency & Fellowship Awards: Stella Ebner". Kala Art Institute. Retrieved June 10, 2014.
  34. ^ "New Art on Market Street Poster Series Celebrates 50 Years of Bay Area Activism | Public Art & Civic Art Collection". San Francisco Arts Commission. July 3, 2013. Retrieved June 10, 2014.
  35. ^ Mazinani, Sanaz. "Curator, 2011". Tirgan Biennial. Tirgan. Retrieved October 28, 2024.
  36. ^ "Sanaz Mazinani (Curator) | Tirgan". Tirgan.ca. Archived from the original on March 1, 2014. Retrieved June 10, 2014.
  37. ^ Visual Arts. "Negar Farajiani: Made in China". Tirgan. Archived from the original on March 1, 2014. Retrieved June 10, 2014.
  38. ^ Visual Arts. "Hope Echoed". Tirgan. Archived from the original on March 1, 2014. Retrieved June 10, 2014.
  39. ^ "The Third Space | Visual Arts". Harbourfront Centre. September 15, 2013. Retrieved June 10, 2014.
  40. ^ "WRITTEN ON THE BODY/ POLITICS OF POETRY: Iranian Artists & the Power of Script Pt 1". Mixed Bag Mag. July 17, 2013. Retrieved June 10, 2014.
  41. ^ "Tirgan: Visions of Eternity". harbourfrontcentre.com. Retrieved June 24, 2014.
  42. ^ "New Constellations: 1st Screening of Contemporary Iranian Video Art in LA at the IAAB Conference". payvand.com. October 11, 2012. Retrieved June 24, 2014.
  43. ^ "SANAZ MAZINANI, "Frames of the Visible" Exhibition Press Release by Stephen Bulger Gallery". www.bulgergallery.com. Retrieved April 24, 2017.
  44. ^ "Sanaz Mazinani artwork presented by Stephen Bulger Gallery". www.bulgergallery.com. Retrieved April 24, 2017.
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