Hadi Gharabaghi, Artist Lecture
Artist and UMBC alum, Hadi Gharabaghi '06 will discuss the works currently on display in the Library Gallery exhibition, Persian Visions: Contemporary Photography from Iran. Gharabaghi, originally form Tehran, Iran, will speak about the photographs, shedding light on the appearance of some of the cultural, historic and religious symbolism and imagery depicted. The lecture will also touch upon the way in which the current political climate in Iran affects practicing artists.
As a young boy during the Iranian Islamic Revolution of 1979, Hadi Gharabaghi sought refuge in the imaginative world of literature and cinema. Once in the United States, he transformed this enthusiasm into academic work in critical studies and media. Hadi’s experience as a minority –a Baha’i among Shiite Muslims, then a Middle Easterner in the United States– gave him a keen understanding of the values of both assimilation and identity. These themes drive his artistic works.
Hadi Gharabaghi’s background in photography, film, art history, theory and criticism includes a B.A. in Photography from Montgomery College, a B.A. in Visual Art with a concentration in Art History from UMBC, and from numerous exhibitions and educational projects. He is a Jack Cooke Kent Foundation Scholar, and is currently a doctoral candidate in Cinema Studies at NYU where his focus is Iranian film.
This event is free and open to the public.