Helia Chitsazan
Works
Biography
Don't look at me like that, 2023
Helia Chitsazan (b.1995 Tehran, Iran) In this series of paintings, ‘Don’t look at me like that,’ and ‘The
wolf and the sheep,’ Chitsazan conveys the notion of memories, identity, absence, and ephemerality.
Her works reflect significant moments spent with friends and family back home in Tehran, Iran, as those
people, places, and moments are now inaccessible. To overcome this absence, she uses her imagination
to recreate those moments of affection and intimacy.
The narratives usually take place in interior spaces reminiscent of ‘home’. She reflects, “...home is where
the secret double lives of Iranians occur - drinking, dancing, smoking, and holding hands, despite these
being illegal in public. These moments are profoundly honest, emotional, and sincere demonstrations of
our community.”
Using videos shot with her phone and old family VHS records, Chitsazan builds these compositions
based on the imprints experienced as a protagonist of the painting.
Chitsazan graduated from the Tehran University of Art in 2018. She received her MFA at the School of
Visual Arts in New York City in 2023. She has shown at Thierry Goldberg Gallery, Villageone art gallery,
and New Collectors gallery in New York. She won the 1st painting grant from the Elizabeth Greenshields
Foundation, Montreal, Canada.
@helia.cht
wolf and the sheep,’ Chitsazan conveys the notion of memories, identity, absence, and ephemerality.
Her works reflect significant moments spent with friends and family back home in Tehran, Iran, as those
people, places, and moments are now inaccessible. To overcome this absence, she uses her imagination
to recreate those moments of affection and intimacy.
The narratives usually take place in interior spaces reminiscent of ‘home’. She reflects, “...home is where
the secret double lives of Iranians occur - drinking, dancing, smoking, and holding hands, despite these
being illegal in public. These moments are profoundly honest, emotional, and sincere demonstrations of
our community.”
Using videos shot with her phone and old family VHS records, Chitsazan builds these compositions
based on the imprints experienced as a protagonist of the painting.
Chitsazan graduated from the Tehran University of Art in 2018. She received her MFA at the School of
Visual Arts in New York City in 2023. She has shown at Thierry Goldberg Gallery, Villageone art gallery,
and New Collectors gallery in New York. She won the 1st painting grant from the Elizabeth Greenshields
Foundation, Montreal, Canada.
@helia.cht
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