North Van Arts presents an exhibition by Mehran Modarres-Sadeghi as part of its Art in the Community Programme. Ma Miaeem va Miravim (We Come and Go) is an artist book and a series of drawings which translates the artist’s first-grade English book, We Come and Go, from the Dick and Jane series into Persian-English, in which Persian words are written using the Roman alphabet. The phrase ‘Ma Miaeem va Miravim’ in the title is translation of ‘We Come and Go’ in Persian-English. The coloured illustrations from the children’s book are also reproduced in black and white with some thematic changes and translations. This work poses questions about the preservation of the Persian language amongst generations of Iranian immigrants living in North America. It poses questions about the importance of preserving one’s mother tongue amongst future generations of immigrants while also drawing attention to the role of English as a dominant language of globalization and its impacts on other cultures.
Artist’s Bio:
Mehran Modarres-Sadeghi is a visual artist based in Vancouver, BC. Originally from Isfahan, Iran, she immigrated to Canada more than 20 years ago where she has received an MFA in Visual Arts from Emily Carr University of Art + Design (2017) and a BFA from University of British Columbia (2007). She also holds a BSc in Physics from Isfahan University of Technology, Isfahan, Iran. Modarres-Sadeghi’s recent practice is mostly engaged with drawing and sculpture, although she has worked in a variety of media such as photography, painting, and installation. She has exhibited her work at several art galleries in British Columbia, including group exhibitions at Concourse Gallery (ECU), Charles H. Scott Gallery (ECU), and most notably at Centre A as part of a group exhibition in spring 2017 and later at the Cityscape Community Art Space in summer 2019. One of her recent exhibitions, Thread, was a solo show at the Sunshine Coast Arts Council’s Doris Crowston Gallery in Sechelt, BC, in Spring 2020. This exhibition was well received and she was featured in a CBC radio interview by Sheryl MacKay, host of North by Northwest, in two podcasts, and in print, including ECU News. Her most recent exhibition was a solo show, TRACING SHADOWS, at Gallery 1515 in Vancouver in Fall 2021. Her next solo exhibition will be at District Library Gallery, Lynn Valley main Library, North Vancouver, BC, in winter 2022.