“A spirit of exploration and experimentation resides at the core of my artistic approach. In 2014, I started experimenting with the effects of everyday materials such as sugar, coffee, and salt. The unique texture of salt led me to incorporate solutions in varying saturation levels into my paints. Researching other artists using salt, I found inspiration in Juris Boiko's photographs, Sigalit Landau's sculptures, and particularly Christopher Cichocki's environmental art. Through my environmental study and research, I recognized the significance of salt in the realms of economics, politics, and trade. While the value of salt as a commodity has declined, its impact on freshwater systems has become a concern due to rising sea levels, climate change, and global droughts.”
— Aazam Irilian
About the artist
Aazam Irilian
American
Aazam Irilian creates paintings, sculptures and digital imagery. Her dreamlike imagery functions as a metaphor for the moments of stillness that punctuate the chaos of life. Dealing in abstraction, she generates tranquil poetic images that blur the boundaries of memory and the unknown. Irilian’s works have been exhibited nationally and she is in numerous private collections around the world—Iran, France and across the United States. Solo exhibitions include “Preserved Memories” and “Stillness In Chaos,” The Main Gallery, Santa Clarita, CA (2022), “Cosmic Whispers,” Fabrik Projects Gallery Los Angeles, CA (2020/2021), and “New World” at CIM Group Gallery in Anaheim, CA (2014). Kipaipai Group Exhibition, Melissa Morgan Gallery, Palm Desert, CA (2022), and Artist Alliance Biennial at Oceanside Museum, Oceanside, CA (2022) and “A Century of California Women Artists,” Brand Library and Art Center, Glendale, CA (2022) are among her most recent group exhibitions. Previous installation projects include Stoning (2006) and Dare to Be a Woman (2004) created in response to the injustice and violence against women of Iran and exhibited at the Cal State University Northridge (CSUN) Art Gallery. She was the featured artist at the Museum of Art & History - MOAH:CEDAR, Lancaster, California (2015) and exhibited in MOAH’s Annual All-Media Arts exhibitions in 2021, 2020 and 2015. In 2020 she was awarded Third Place at “The Art of the Square” at bG Gallery, Los Angeles, CA, and received Best of Show at JF Gallery, Miami, in 2017. She was also awarded staff’s favorite at the 31stAnnual “Made in California” at the Brea City Art Gallery, Brea, CA in 2016. Irilian’s art has been featured in variety of publications, including Art & Beyond Magazine (2020) and Fusionart: Creative Expression Through the Heart (2012) written by Rassouli, Fusionart founder. Originally from Iran, Irilian has resided in Southern California for over forty years. She completed a Master of Art in Studio Art at California State University Northridge. She has been an art educator for over 30 years, sharing her passion with students of all ages.
