Arghavan Khosravi is known for imagery that intimately centers the female perspective. Memories of her coming-of-age in Tehran—a metropolitan hub where liberal values and theocratic governance collide—manifest in the artist’s blending of styles and reference points. Equal parts real and surreal, Khosravi’s work places traditional Persian literary, architectural and decorative motifs in dialogue with objects such as Greco-Roman sculptural forms and contemporary articles of clothing, as a way of conveying ambiguous narratives that cross time and place. The artist received her BFA from Islamic Azad University in Tehran, Iran and holds MFA’s from the University of Tehran and the Rhode Island School of Design. Recent solo shows include The Witness, Kavi Gupta Gallery (Chicago, IL); Truth Be Told, Koenig Gallery, (Berlin, DE) and a show at the Currier Museum of Art (Manchester, NH).
The Entrapment is from a series of works exploring layered figures, combining women from different spaces into a cogent form, uncovering aspects of one another that would otherwise be hidden. The artist emphasizes the duality of the figures with strong contrast and framing in her clean, technical style. A translucent, feathered tail wraps around the left side of the figure, tied to the tethered, inner figure in a shining, red ribbon. Birds are a frequent motif in Khosravi’s work, representing freedom or constraint—a fitting metaphor for the struggle for women’s rights, a cause close to the artist’s heart. Both in dialogue with her emotive color choices, vibrancy and warmth present depictions of heaven, and cycles of death are seen in cool, winter blues. The artist has hand-embellished a portion of the edition with additional painted details in the trees, making each hand-embellished piece a unique work.
Arghavan Khosravi
The Entrapment, 2022
21 x 21 inches
Archival pigment print
Edition of 15
Hand-embellished, signed, and numbered by the artist
Edition of 30 with 5AP 1PP
Signed and numbered by the artist
“I'm thrilled to be supporting Planned Parenthood during such a critical juncture in the course of women's rights. I deeply believe that all women deserve equal, unfettered access to reproductive healthcare, and Planned Parenthood works tirelessly throughout the country to ensure these needs are met,” says Khosravi on the collaboration. “The Entrapment speaks directly to the anxiety, fear and shame that women who are arbitrarily limited in choice face—making the organization a natural choice for this project. I'm proud to play a role in the continual fight for reproductive freedom, and this organization's rich legacy also assures me that these proceeds will directly benefit women across the country whose rights were stripped away overnight.”
ART FOR CHANGE will donate a portion of proceeds to Planned Parenthood Greater New York in support of the fight for reproductive justice across the country. As in all series, artists will receive 50% of net proceeds from print sales.
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*Unframed prints ship within 1-3 weeks.
*Framed prints ship within 3-6 weeks.
