Each String is Thread, Each Color a Chord

by Shabnam Jannesari

May 19 – July 12, 2023

Reception: June 1, 5-7pm

“My work challenges the oppression of women by the Islamic patriarchy in Iran. The opposition is not explicit or radical in my paintings and drawings, rather, I seek to create a different kind of world for my figures, one that has a quiet kind of power, and is intimate and free.”

These paintings tell the stories of the life Shabnam Jannesari left behind. In her work, she explores the bittersweet nostalgia of distant intimacies in her life. Jannesari’s closest friends and family are transformed into figures in surreal and hopeful visions of an alternate reality.

Jannesari’s paintings express her personal story, but they are relatable to any woman who has been censored, sexualized, or otherwise oppressed by a patriarchal society. Her subjects stare back and confront not only the viewer, but the notion that women should have to be anything other than their truest self.

Through this, she is reclaiming multiple aspects of her identity as an Iranian female and, thereby, establishing her longing for genuine selfhood.

Related Scheduling and Events:

Schedule appointments on this website (not required): fred-simon-gallery.mailchimpsites.com/book-online/

The reception is June 1st, from 5-7 p.m. Reception is free and open to the public.

We will post a video with the artist on our YouTube channel. Follow the Nebraska Arts Council on Facebook for updates: NAC Facebook Link