Sanaz Mazinani facts for kids

Sanaz Mazinani (born in 1978) is a talented artist, curator, and teacher. She was born in Iran and later moved to Canada. Sanaz is famous for her amazing photographs and installation art. Installation art means creating art that fills a whole space, like a room. Today, she lives and works in San Francisco and Toronto.

About Sanaz Mazinani

Her Early Life

Sanaz Mazinani was born in Tehran, Iran in 1978. When she was 11 years old, she moved to Canada. Her brother, Mani Mazinani, is also an artist.

In Canada, Sanaz studied art at the Ontario College of Art and Design. This school is now called OCAD University. She finished her studies there in 2003. Later, in 2009, she moved to the United States. She earned a special art degree called a Master of Fine Arts from Stanford University in 2011.

Her Amazing Artwork

Sanaz Mazinani creates art that makes people think. She often uses photographs to build large art pieces. These pieces can fill a room or a public space.

Some of her well-known art projects include:

• Bay Area Activism (2013)
• Site, Sight, and Insight (2013)
• Conference of the Birds (2012)
• Frames of the Visible (2011–2013)
• Room for Disruption (2011)
• When We Start to Love War (2010)
• Iran Revisited (1999–2013)

She also helped write a book called Unfolding Images. It was published in 2012 and talks about her art.

Art Shows and Exhibitions

Sanaz Mazinani's art has been shown in many places around the world. Her work has been seen in North America, Europe, and Asia.

Group Exhibitions

Her art has been part of many group shows, where her work is displayed with other artists. Some of these include:

• Twisted Sisters: Reimagining Urban Portraiture in Zurich, Switzerland, and San Francisco City Hall.
• The Magic of Persia Contemporary Art Prize 2013 Exhibition in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
• Border Cultures at the Art Gallery of Windsor in Canada. This show won an award for being the "exhibit of the year."
• Occupy Bay Area at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco, California.

Solo Exhibitions

Sanaz has also had many solo exhibitions, where only her art is shown. Some important ones are:

• Sight, Site, and Insight at Gallery 44 Center for Contemporary Photography in 2013.
• Celebrating Bay Area Activism, which put her photo-collages on 36 bus stops in San Francisco.
• Frames of the Visible in 2012 at Stephen Bulger Gallery in Toronto, Canada.
• U.S.A.I.R.A.N (2014), a public art project that covered windows with digital art.
• Signal to Noise in 2017 at the San Francisco Camerawork Gallery.
• Light Times in 2019 at the Stephen Bulger Gallery and the Triton Museum of Art.

Awards and Recognition

Sanaz Mazinani has received many awards and grants for her art. These awards help her create new projects.

Some of her awards include:

• Grants from the Canada Council (2013).
• Awards from the San Francisco Arts Commission (2013).
• A fellowship from the Kala Art Institute in 2012.
• Awards from Stanford University, Ontario Arts Council, and the Toronto Arts Council.

She was also chosen for the SFAC Art on Market Street project, which led to her Celebrating Bay Area Activism art.

Being a Curator

Besides making art, Sanaz Mazinani is also a curator. A curator is someone who plans and organizes art exhibitions. They choose the artworks and decide how they will be shown.

Recent Curatorial Projects

In 2013, Sanaz curated three exhibitions for the Tirgan Festival in Toronto. This festival celebrates Iranian arts and culture.

• Made in China: An outdoor art display by artist Negar Farajiani.
• Hope Echoed: An exhibition of portraits of Iranian women.
• The Third Space: A three-month exhibition featuring works by six Iranian artists. This show explored how people create new identities when they live in a different country. It was very popular.

She has also curated other projects, like:

• Visions of Eternity (2011), which included works by several artists.
• New Constellations: Contemporary Iranian Video Art, with Amirali Ghasemi.
• Off World, an outdoor art installation.
• ALMANAC: An Index of Current Work and Thought, a publication about art theory.

See also

• List of Iranian women artists