By LILY TINOCO | Reporter
Delbar Azari has been creating art since she was a 19-year-old college student.
She was accidentally introduced to drawing after joining her brother in his art lessons. He eventually dropped the lessons, but she kept going.
“Artwork took over my whole life,” the Highlands resident said. “And here I am, still creating.”
Now, Palisadians are invited to view Azari’s new solo show, “Reflections,” at Topanga Canyon Gallery, which will run through Sunday, October 2.
At the same time as she got into art, Azari was studying to become an electrical engineer. She went on to earn a Bachelor of Fine Arts from University of Tehran and a Master of Electrical Engineering from University of Southern California.
“Throughout her art journey, she has utilized many different mediums and techniques, including oils, acrylics, ceramics and photography,” according to a statement from Topanga Canyon Gallery. “Her engineering background and attention to details serves her well in perfect execution of concept and flawless finishes.”
Azari said the art she is creating now is based on her own curiosities. This manifested itself in “Reflections.”
“How the light acts and reacts with different synthetic materials, whether they are reflective or translucent or transparent,” she explained. “And while the light passes through that, how that behaves … It’s based on that curiosity that I have always had since childhood.”
Azari said all the pieces in “Reflections” were physically made in 2022, but she has been playing with these ideas for the past four years.
“I have been going through a lot of iteration of how I want to present it, and if you look at my earlier work with the same idea, they look very different than what I am presenting right now,” she said to the Palisadian-Post. “During the four years, I’ve fine-tuned my skills of how I want to execute this idea that I have.”
She said she completes her drawings on her computer, has them cut out by a fabrication company and made into shadow boxes—then she creates the art.
“Using a variety of synthetic materials, she has mastered the art of bending, reflecting, diffusing and mirroring the ambient light surrounding her work,” according to the statement from the gallery. “Each piece has its own complementary colors and shapes, generating a calming sense of well-being. Relying on the natural beauty of ocean waves and the Santa Monica Mountains to inspire her designs, and the color palette borrowed from beautiful spring gardens, [Azari] focuses on the lines between engineering and nature.”
Azari said her curiosities of light, color and reflection will likely carry into her future works.
“Reflections” opened Saturday, September 17, and will run through Sunday, October 2.
For more information, visit topangacanyongallery.com or delbarartstudio.com.
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