In 2013, at the age of 33, I made the decision to leave my home country shortly after completing my Master's degree in Fine Art. Leaving behind all my memories, I embarked on a journey into an entirely different world.

​

'Once Upon a Time' chronicles the first three years of my life in America, with the initial year being spent in a small room within a friend's house. It was a year filled with pain, uncertainty, fear, and longing. In that confined space, painting was not possible, so I turned to drawing as a means to soothe my heart. My small sketchbook became my constant companion.

​

Navigating the immigration process and the associated challenges was not the sole burden of my first year in the United States. In addition, I had to acclimate to a new culture, a world of unknowns, unfamiliar laws, relationships, and, to top it off, the English language as the new tool of communication, which I had never mastered.

​

In the second year, I was able to rent a tiny condo for myself, and my first purchases were an easel, canvas, and paints. Finally, the time had come to transfer my concerns onto the canvas and utilize the language I was proficient in. I opened my notebook and immersed myself in thousands of sketches and colors.

​

'Once Upon a Time' serves as a memoir of the challenging moments I experienced during my migration. It is the embodiment of my personal story. I exist within each piece—exhausted, speechless, devoid of color, brimming with doubt, but always resilient with hope, never surrendering. In this collection, I incorporate profound symbols rooted in Persian culture and literature to express my emotions. The goldfish symbolizes dynamism and effort. The green plant represents freshness, growth, and life. Wheat embodies achievement after arduous labor and exertion. Water symbolizes purity and spirituality.

​

My paintings are created through multiple layers of paint, applied one on top of the other, signifying the various layers of pain, sorrow, suffering, hard work, and happiness I encountered during those less than luminous years of my life.