Azin Agharabi
Azin Agharabi comes from Iran. Her father and older sister were both painters, and from an early age she loved to draw and paint, indeed she was obsessed. In high school she took up the formal study of art, and a turning point came when her sister took her to her university and she found out about oil painting. That is when she knew she wanted to be an artist. She went to the leading art school, the University of Art in Tehran. She worked hard there and also spent lots of time with a group of artist friends who socialized and supported each other.
After graduation in 2006, she had a period of great success at time when the art world in Iran was booming. She appeared in shows in Iran and became connected to a gallery that put on shows for her in London, Dubai, Kuwait and Turkey. The shows in London and Kuwait were sold out. However, she could not get a visa to attend. After a few years the climate for art changed in Iran, and being an artist became more of a struggle. In 2016, Azin came to the United States and began a career here. She was in some group shows and did a commission for a financial services firm in Pittsburgh, painting three major works for their different offices. Azin makes a living taking care of pets, and she does a lot of work creating pictures of animals. She currently lives in Crown Heights.