Artist conversation #4 !?!?!

Artist: Mahsa Soroudi

Exhibition: Nature’s Cadence

Media: Photography

Instagram: @mahsasoroudi

Website: https://www.mahsasoroudi.com/#!plant-show/bzxke

About the Artist

Masha Soroudi was born in Tehran, the capital of Iran. Her parents both had interest in art with her father being a painter. She grew up in Tehran and graduated from Azad Art and Architecture University in 2006. She graduated with a BFA in Visual Communication. Tehran is Iran’s art capital that has many galleries. She focuses on interdisciplinary topics that can turn into meaningful exhibitions as well as be case studies. She also works to show artists that may have been missed because of unfair exposure. 

Formal Analysis 

Masha Soroudi’s project, Nature’s Cadence, shows the life of plants through replantation. She changes the environment of succulents by clipping the leaves from the main plant and regrowing it. This piece is ever-growing and changing as the plants grow. It shows the plants as they blossom from the leaves and also hides the unseen portion of the roots. This project kind of has two different points because of this. The plants all look different as some grow faster and slower. One plant almost died but then continued to grow through that phase. The focus is on showing how plants adapt and grow in a new environment, like her moving to the U.S, and shows the effort it takes to achieve that. 

Content Analysis

This project shows the effort needed to adapt and grow to continue living in a new environment. It shows the fight needed to survive and gave Soroudi the motivation to do the same. One plant was dying and Soroudi was very disappointed but the plant continued to live and grow. It still shows the dead part on the base of the plant but also has grown a decent size that overcomes that. This project is connected to Soroudi because it shows how she needed to live and grow. The plants represent her adapting in her new environment. 

My Experience

I greatly enjoyed listening to this artist during Glenn Zuckman’s interview. Even though it was a video from a few years ago, it still shows a lot of meaning in it that is important now. The project, Nature’s Cadence, has a lot of meaning behind it and a powerful message I believe many should know.  It tells a story of her life through the growing of the plants. I enjoyed learning about her projects and do feel inspired by her story.