Shokoufeh Kavani
Encyclopedia
Shokufeh Kavani is an Iranian contemporary painter, translator and artist currently living in Sydney
, Australia
. She is primarily known as a translator and as an abstract painter of the post–Islamic society of Iran
.
Primary and Secondary School and then at ( Joan of Arc ) Jeanne D'Arc High School. She went on to the Bandar-Abbas medical university for a bachelor degree in Nursing
before migrating to Australia as a professional nurse.
took place. The eight-year Iran-Iraq War
had a deep impact on her. While in Iran she carried on painting, she never exhibited her work in Iran.
In 1994, she earned a First Certificate in English from the Cambridge University centre in Tehran. She decided to put her new ability to use by coupling it with her deep knowledge of Persian literature
. She started translating "The Whirling Dervishes" by Ira (Shems) Friedlander, a Best Seller published in 2004 (1382) by Zaryab Publishers. The book is about the whirling dervish
es and the ceremonies with which they are involved. The story of Mevlana Jallaledin-Balkhi known as Rumi in the western world is embedded in the narrative. The book has magnificent black-and-white photos of the Sema, a Whirling Dervishes ceremony which opens a new window to the mysterious and esoteric world of the Dervishes. The majority of the photographs were taken by Ira (Shems) Friedlander. The rest are by Nazih Ozal. The new approach to the history of the Mevlevieh sect and their music over the last 100 years makes the book unique.
In 1997, Shokufeh migrated to Sydney, Australia
and started working and studying again for her bachelor degree in Nursing
as her degree from Iran was not recognised.
All this while, she continued painting and in 2003 had her first solo exhibition entitled Persian Graffiti, promoted by the famous Iranian writer, Shahrnush Parsipur
. The exhibition gained a great deal of attention from the Australian Media. After the 2005 Cronulla riots
, she joined the art group " TAH, Art for Humanity " and participated in twelve group exhibitions all over Australia to raise awareness against racism.
Some sale proceeds of the group went to an Afghan Charity, Mahboba's Promise
, to support Afghan widows and orphans. These humanitarian efforts earned her nominations for the "Australian of the Year
Award in 2005, 2007 & 2008, and for the Pride of Australian Medal in 2005 and 2007 by The Daily Telegraph (Australia)
newspaper.
Her translation of an article, "Dog and the long winter", from a book by Iranian writer Shahrnush Parsipur
, was tabled in the Conference on Women and Depression in 2007, Sydney, Australia. In 2008, her painting, "Dog and the long winter" was chosen for a poster for the Women's Mental Health International Conference in Melbourne
, Australia.
She continues to exhibit her paintings regularly. Two of her paintings featured among the official final selections in the My Favourite Movie Moments exhibition, the 2006 Sydney Film Festival
and also her paper appeared in First International Symposium about Iranian Cinema . Two paintings have been selected for 100 years of imprisonment, a special exhibition organised in the United States of America in support of political prisoners in Iran.
In 2006, she was selected to present "Prince Claus Awards
" to Dr. Michael Mel in Papua New Guinea - University of Goroka
alongside the Dutch Ambassador H.E.Mr. Niek van Zutphen. She also attended the main "Prince Claus Awards" ceremony in 2008 and met the Dutch Royal family and the laureates of the awards.
She has also participated in Fictive Days Sixten Kai Nielsen
, a project organised by www.wooloo.org for the Berlin
Festival in 2008, wherein she played the role of Queen Elizabeth I of England
along with seven others playing famous characters in the history of cinema.
Her work was the official selection for the Australian Day special exhibition at the gallery of " At the vanishing point " in Sydney. In 2009, her translation of Anita Heiss
’s "Who am I? The Diary of Mary Talence" was published in Tehran by Morvarid Publishers . This has been positively reviewed in the press by Shahrnush Parsipur
, Asadollah Amraee and Elaheh Dehnavi and acclaimed by the public.
In 2010, she became the first Iranian-born Australian recipient of the Edna Ryan Awards in the category of Art, bestowed by the New South Wales Women's Electoral Lobby
to women who have been pioneers in different walks of life.
She currently lives in Sydney, works as a nurse, and also studies for her postgraduate certificate as a Genetic Counsellor in Charles Sturt University
, paints and intends to take participate in more exhibitions and works on translating another book. Three of her paintings will appear in 2011 Florence Biennale
, Italy
.
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. She is primarily known as a translator and as an abstract painter of the post–Islamic society of Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
.
Background
Shokufeh was born in 1970 in Tehran, Iran. She received her education first at the SaadiSaadi (poet)
Abū-Muḥammad Muṣliḥ al-Dīn bin Abdallāh Shīrāzī better known by his pen-name as Saʿdī or, simply, Saadi, was one of the major Persian poets of the medieval period. He is not only famous in Persian-speaking countries, but he has also been quoted in western sources...
Primary and Secondary School and then at ( Joan of Arc ) Jeanne D'Arc High School. She went on to the Bandar-Abbas medical university for a bachelor degree in Nursing
Nursing
Nursing is a healthcare profession focused on the care of individuals, families, and communities so they may attain, maintain, or recover optimal health and quality of life from conception to death....
before migrating to Australia as a professional nurse.
Life and Career
At age 19, she started painting in reaction to the events that were happening around her. She was only nine when the 1979 Islamic revolutionIranian Revolution
The Iranian Revolution refers to events involving the overthrow of Iran's monarchy under Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi and its replacement with an Islamic republic under Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the leader of the...
took place. The eight-year Iran-Iraq War
Iran-Iraq War
The Iran–Iraq War was an armed conflict between the armed forces of Iraq and Iran, lasting from September 1980 to August 1988, making it the longest conventional war of the twentieth century...
had a deep impact on her. While in Iran she carried on painting, she never exhibited her work in Iran.
In 1994, she earned a First Certificate in English from the Cambridge University centre in Tehran. She decided to put her new ability to use by coupling it with her deep knowledge of Persian literature
Persian literature
Persian literature spans two-and-a-half millennia, though much of the pre-Islamic material has been lost. Its sources have been within historical Persia including present-day Iran as well as regions of Central Asia where the Persian language has historically been the national language...
. She started translating "The Whirling Dervishes" by Ira (Shems) Friedlander, a Best Seller published in 2004 (1382) by Zaryab Publishers. The book is about the whirling dervish
Dervish
A Dervish or Darvesh is someone treading a Sufi Muslim ascetic path or "Tariqah", known for their extreme poverty and austerity, similar to mendicant friars in Christianity or Hindu/Buddhist/Jain sadhus.-Etymology:The Persian word darvīsh is of ancient origin and descends from a Proto-Iranian...
es and the ceremonies with which they are involved. The story of Mevlana Jallaledin-Balkhi known as Rumi in the western world is embedded in the narrative. The book has magnificent black-and-white photos of the Sema, a Whirling Dervishes ceremony which opens a new window to the mysterious and esoteric world of the Dervishes. The majority of the photographs were taken by Ira (Shems) Friedlander. The rest are by Nazih Ozal. The new approach to the history of the Mevlevieh sect and their music over the last 100 years makes the book unique.
In 1997, Shokufeh migrated to Sydney, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and started working and studying again for her bachelor degree in Nursing
Nursing
Nursing is a healthcare profession focused on the care of individuals, families, and communities so they may attain, maintain, or recover optimal health and quality of life from conception to death....
as her degree from Iran was not recognised.
All this while, she continued painting and in 2003 had her first solo exhibition entitled Persian Graffiti, promoted by the famous Iranian writer, Shahrnush Parsipur
Shahrnush Parsipur
Shahrnush Parsipur is an Iranian novelist. She is the daughter of an attorney in the Iranian Justice Ministry originally from Shiraz.-Biography:...
. The exhibition gained a great deal of attention from the Australian Media. After the 2005 Cronulla riots
2005 Cronulla riots
The 2005 Cronulla riots were a series of sectarian clashes and mob violence originating in Cronulla, New South Wales and spreading, over the next few nights, to additional Sydney suburbs....
, she joined the art group " TAH, Art for Humanity " and participated in twelve group exhibitions all over Australia to raise awareness against racism.
Some sale proceeds of the group went to an Afghan Charity, Mahboba's Promise
Mahboba's promise
Mahboba's Promise is an Australian non-profit organisation dedicated to helping the women and the large number of orphaned children of Afghanistan. It is one of the few non-governmental organisations operational in that war-torn nation entirely funded by private donations and currently looks after...
, to support Afghan widows and orphans. These humanitarian efforts earned her nominations for the "Australian of the Year
Australian of the Year
Since 1960 the Australian of the Year Award has been part of the celebrations surrounding Australia Day , during which time the award has grown steadily in significance to become Australia’s pre-eminent award. The Australian of the Year announcement has become a very prominent part of the annual...
Award in 2005, 2007 & 2008, and for the Pride of Australian Medal in 2005 and 2007 by The Daily Telegraph (Australia)
The Daily Telegraph (Australia)
The Daily Telegraph is an Australian tabloid newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, by Nationwide News, part of News Corporation.The Tele, as it is also known, was founded in 1879. From 1936 to 1972, it was owned by Frank Packer's Australian Consolidated Press. That year it was sold to...
newspaper.
Her translation of an article, "Dog and the long winter", from a book by Iranian writer Shahrnush Parsipur
Shahrnush Parsipur
Shahrnush Parsipur is an Iranian novelist. She is the daughter of an attorney in the Iranian Justice Ministry originally from Shiraz.-Biography:...
, was tabled in the Conference on Women and Depression in 2007, Sydney, Australia. In 2008, her painting, "Dog and the long winter" was chosen for a poster for the Women's Mental Health International Conference in Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, Australia.
She continues to exhibit her paintings regularly. Two of her paintings featured among the official final selections in the My Favourite Movie Moments exhibition, the 2006 Sydney Film Festival
Sydney Film Festival
The Sydney Film Festival is an annual film festival held in the Australian city of Sydney and is held over 12 days in June. The competitive film festival draws international and local attention, with films being showcased in several venues across the city centre and includes features,...
and also her paper appeared in First International Symposium about Iranian Cinema . Two paintings have been selected for 100 years of imprisonment, a special exhibition organised in the United States of America in support of political prisoners in Iran.
In 2006, she was selected to present "Prince Claus Awards
Prince Claus Awards
The Prince Claus Fund was inaugurated in 1996, named in honor of Prince Claus of The Netherlands. It receives an annual subsidy from the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs....
" to Dr. Michael Mel in Papua New Guinea - University of Goroka
University of Goroka
The University of Goroka is a university in the Eastern Highlands Province of Papua New Guinea. It provides teaching in three faculties and in two schools...
alongside the Dutch Ambassador H.E.Mr. Niek van Zutphen. She also attended the main "Prince Claus Awards" ceremony in 2008 and met the Dutch Royal family and the laureates of the awards.
She has also participated in Fictive Days Sixten Kai Nielsen
Sixten Kai Nielsen
Sixten Kai Nielsen is a Danish artist, living and working in Copenhagen. In 1997 he played the main role in the Danish movie Det store flip....
, a project organised by www.wooloo.org for the Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
Festival in 2008, wherein she played the role of Queen Elizabeth I of England
Elizabeth I of England
Elizabeth I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death. Sometimes called The Virgin Queen, Gloriana, or Good Queen Bess, Elizabeth was the fifth and last monarch of the Tudor dynasty...
along with seven others playing famous characters in the history of cinema.
Her work was the official selection for the Australian Day special exhibition at the gallery of " At the vanishing point " in Sydney. In 2009, her translation of Anita Heiss
Anita Heiss
Anita Heiss is a contemporary Australian author of Austrian and Indigenous Australian descent.Anita Heiss is from the Wiradjuri people though she grew up in and lives in Sydney. Her mother was brought up in a Catholic mission and her father is originally from Austria...
’s "Who am I? The Diary of Mary Talence" was published in Tehran by Morvarid Publishers . This has been positively reviewed in the press by Shahrnush Parsipur
Shahrnush Parsipur
Shahrnush Parsipur is an Iranian novelist. She is the daughter of an attorney in the Iranian Justice Ministry originally from Shiraz.-Biography:...
, Asadollah Amraee and Elaheh Dehnavi and acclaimed by the public.
In 2010, she became the first Iranian-born Australian recipient of the Edna Ryan Awards in the category of Art, bestowed by the New South Wales Women's Electoral Lobby
Women's Electoral Lobby
WEL is credited with major achievements for women in Australia in relation to anti-discrimination and equal opportunity legislation, equal pay decisions, the funding of women’s and children’s services.....
to women who have been pioneers in different walks of life.
She currently lives in Sydney, works as a nurse, and also studies for her postgraduate certificate as a Genetic Counsellor in Charles Sturt University
Charles Sturt University
Charles Sturt University is an Australian multi-campus university located in New South Wales, Victoria, and the Australian Capital Territory. It has campuses at Bathurst, Canberra, Albury-Wodonga, Dubbo, Goulburn, Orange, Wagga Wagga and Burlington, Ontario...
, paints and intends to take participate in more exhibitions and works on translating another book. Three of her paintings will appear in 2011 Florence Biennale
Florence Biennale
The Florence Biennale is an international contemporary art fair held every two years in the Historical Fortezza da Basso in Florence, Italy. The Biennale is run by Arte Studio, whose first contemporary art exhibition occurred in 1986. Subsequent exhibits grew, and they eventually formed the first...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
.