Parimah Avani

Parimah Avani, born in 1988 in Tehran, Iran, is a multidisciplinary artist with various solo 
and group exhibitions, performances, and published illustrations and writings. She is a 
recognized figure in contemporary hermetic Persian literature and the avant-garde "Other" 
movement. Her book, "Magic Verses of Antalus," was a finalist for the prestigious 
"Shamlou" Award. Her most recent achievement is winning an art competition for a 
scholarship and an art residency at Werkstatt Plettenberg in Germany, culminating in a 
solo exhibition held at the Gallery of the German Bank of Sparkasse. 
Avani's artistic journey began with travels to China and Russia during her formative years, 
oriental philosophies, particularly Zen and Buddhism, and folk arts ignited her passion for 
comparative mythology evident in her archaic style. In 2009, she moved to Rome, Italy to 
study multimedia art, gained Master’s in painting at the Fine Art Academy of Rome. 
Immersed in cultural parallels between East and West, mythological themes and 
transcends boundaries in art, exploring magic and ancient scripts inspired by the scholarly 
insights of Frazer and Eliade on rituals. Her anthropological view culminated in a Ph.D. in 
the history of contemporary art from Sapienza University, achieving excellence and honor. 
Her significant project, “Antalus," has led to published writings, performances, and visual 
art, —a multidimensional world-building endeavor that defies convention. Within the 
fictional lands of Antalus, she has constructed a diverse tapestry of cultures, rituals by 
archaic representations, including imaginary alphabets, calendars, maps, fantasy 
creatures, and botanical wonders—rooted in her travels, research, and homeland 
nostalgia. 
Her works merge and recontextualize allegories and folk traditions in a contemporary 
context, and symbology drawing from Saeid's critique of Orientalism, and dismantling 
binary oppositions. Avani's works convey a ritual of Eastern brush strokes, interweaving 
Persian Naqqali narration with expressive ink techniques of Chinese art, inspired by 
European Tachism. Through meticulously rendered calligraphic gestures and Antalusian 
alphabets, Avani’s scrolls evoke ancient writing world, while figures and animals resonate 
cave paintings, The juxtaposition of gestures presents a micro-macro universe—a 
primordial creature, that is gigantic body formed from masses of miniature statues, 
showcasing a radical contrasts of dimensions. Using diverse support materials, from paper 
sourced in the Far East to Egypt, the works embracing a cross-cultural exploration that 
weaves unseen nuances into her works. 
Avani's works reflect socio-political views and serve as a means to navigate censorship. 
Her world-building is an outcome of her experiences of oppression and departure, with the 
aim of fostering cross-cultural and reminding bonds.