Omid Memarian is a journalist and has contributed extensively to the Inter Press Service (IPS) news agency and the Daily Beast, and has published Op-Ed pieces in the New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Wall Street Journal, Time.com, San Francisco Chronicle, Politico and OpenDemocracy.
A World Peace Fellow at the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism (2007-2009), he is the recipient of a “Human Rights Defender Award” (2005), the highest honor given by the Human Rights Watch. As an analyst, he has appeared on MSNBC, NBC, BBC, and Aljazeera amongst others.
Memarian is passionate about art and is an active observer of emerging international photographers and painters.
His own photos were included in an book compilation, “The Great Recession” (2008), published by UC Berkeley’s Graduate School of Journalism. He is also the editor of Sketches of Iran (2013), a collection of 40 cartoons and essays.
Latest posts by Omid Memarian
From uprootedness to artistic expression: An interview with Cameroonian artist Salifou Lindou
'Lindou’s art reflects a rare sensitivity, addressing contemporary complexities through a refined aesthetic lens, reacts to current events and offers a sophisticated meditation on power, identity, and the human condition.'
‘My art is a tribute to my origins and childhood': An interview with Burkina Faso-born artist Saïdou Dicko
'Drawing inspiration from his early years as a shepherd in Burkina Faso, Dicko's artistic prowess blossoms against the backdrop of Sahelian landscapes.'
‘Manifesting my struggles in my painting’: An interview with Iranian artist Zeynab Movahed
Her work communicates the ongoing fight for equal rights in a country that can be described as a “gender-apartheid” state, despite the fact that a large number of its women are highly educated.
‘The ambition of expressing myself freely': A conversation with Iranian artist Arghavan Khosravi
"One does not need to be Iranian to relate to the sense of uncertainty and repression woven into [Khosravi's] paintings."
The power of ‘personal experience': An interview with Egyptian artist Youssef Nabil
Nabil's "technique mixes painting and photography, inspired by hand-painted movie posters of the 1940s and 1950s, and is reminiscent of the pre-digital world."
Ali Banisadr and the art of ‘visual thinking’
Ali Banisadr's MATRIX 185 exhibition at the Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art is the Iranian-American artist’s first solo museum exhibition in the US.
‘Shadow Means Strength, Shadow is Invincible': A conversation with Turkish artist Selma Gurbuz
"That which is real does not change, but its shadow can change. Shadow is a two-dimensional representation. It shows us ourselves."
Through the Orientalist looking-glass: An interview with Moroccan artist Lalla Essaydi
"In my photography, I explore this [Orientalist] space, whether mental or physical, and interrogate its role in gender identity-making, while engaging with centuries of cultural heritage and artistic practices."
‘African art has nourished all civilizations': A Conversation with Algerian artist Rachid Koraichi
"We owe thanks to this wonderful continent that allows us not only to exist but also to give lessons, even if some people want to push us into the corner."
The magic of paper and ink: A conversation with Iranian-American artist Hadieh Shafie
Born in Iran and raised in the US, Hadieh Shafie is fascinated with reimagining the book form, drawing textual forms and exploring color and its emotive power.
History, landscape, body: A conversation with Pakistani artist Ali Kazim
Kazim’s works have been exhibited in major international fairs and exhibitions around the world, including New York’s Frieze art fair in 2019.
‘An interplay between Western and Eastern Cultures': Two art exhibitions on cultural collisions
In October 2019 in Brooklyn, New York, two women artists from Iran and Pakistan exhibited new bodies of work in which they portrayed the interplay between Western and Eastern cultures
‘Creating Suspension Between Contradictory States': An interview with artist Parastou Forouhar
"I try to create the potential for suspension between contradictory states that will emotionally and psychologically engage viewers and make them ask questions."
‘Everybody is looking for authenticity': A conversation with South African artist Siwa Mgoboza
South African multidisciplinary visual artist Siwa Mgoboza is one of the most dynamic emerging artists in the African art scene.
Painting the fears inside us all: A conversation with Syrian artist Rashwan Abdelbaki
Abdelbaki's art expresses what he sees as the “negative effects of racism, religion, and politics that are all striving to divide us and destroy our faith in humanity.”
Material Culture art exhibition communicates deep personal experiences to transcend cultural borders
The exhibition features the work of five Iran-born artists who use “nonrepresentational forms” and a range of materials to create a visual language that communicates deep personal experiences and transcends borders.
Beyond the image: How Spanish photographers Albarrán Cabrera formulate experience through pictures
For Spanish photographers Anna P. Cabrera and Angel Albarrán, memory and beauty are the three pillars of their professional approach to their art.
Africa uncovered: an interview with Aida Muluneh
"[...] being African is really more complex as well and it’s not just one thing. There are different definitions and different interpretations and I just happen to be one of those."
A conversation with Nicky Nodjoumi on the power and politics of his art
"Choosing power as one of the main topics of my work is rooted in the desire to drag it down to the ground and make fun of it."
For these Iranian twin-sister artists, collaboration is “like one person working with her other self”
"'Reincarnation' implies a new life. If we can make the audience wake up and realize the world around them and see the beauty in it, it is a huge success."
From state censorship to western stereotypes, an interview with Iranian artist Maryam Palizgir
Maryam Palzigir's experience fought against both state censorship of artistic expression in Iran and now Western stereotypes of Iranians in the U.S.
