Azadeh Weber

To me, art is a means of expression, communication, and focus. It is a language that flows directly from intention and the heart. As an Iranian American artist, I use art to communicate the unique part of my identity. My cultural background is part of who I am, and since I can't communicate with others in America using Farsi, the visual language of Persian culture becomes how I perform my identity instead.

My life has taken me across many places and cultures: Iran, and then America, where I've lived in California, Alaska, Texas, and Utah before moving to Washington. That movement has shaped how I see identity as something layered and shifting, and art has become the way I build bridges between those cultures and keep my inspiration as alive as possible.

I am self-taught in some ways, but I also come from a family of artists. Both of my parents create, and my father taught me that art is grounded in philosophy—a way of expressing one's own philosophy of life. That idea has stayed with me and shapes how I approach my work.

My work is a mirror to my dynamic experience of nature, self, and the world around me. I draw on geometric Islamic art, calligraphy, fiber arts, painting, and mixed media to create that reflection. Visual storytelling, for me, is an act of resilience, one that carries a certain irony, since in my professional life as a psychologist, I'm not the storyteller. I'm the story listener and the story bank.