Mahshid Rafiei (IR/CA, 1992)
Residency period: May-July 2026
UAE-based Iranian artist Mahshid Rafiei works across sculpture, installation, and drawing. Her practice examines the processes through which material, language, and image become so inextricably intertwined that they ossify projections of prejudiced imaginaries. Rafiei’s work often involves transforming everyday objects and their constituent materials into compositions that inhabit the interstitial space between perception, recognition, and projection.
During her residency, supported by Pro Helvetia, she will further develop this approach by exploring emerging lines of inquiry within her practice. Through research, technical experimentation, and discursive engagement, she will expand both the conceptual and formal dimensions of a new body of work.
Mahshid Rafiei, ‘trace’, 2020