Born in Hamedan, Iran.
Lives and works in Manhattan, NY.
2012-2014
M.F.A. State University of New York, New Paltz, NY
2003-2007
B.F.A. School of Art & Architecture, Islamic Azad University of Tabriz, Iran
2022
Foundation House, Artist Residency Fellowship, Greenwich, CT
2021
FST StudioProjects, StudioProjects Fund, New York, NY
Millay Colony, Austerlitz, NY (wait listed)
2020
Lower Manhattan Cultural Council (LMCC), Creative Engagement Grant, New York, NY
Sculpture Space Residency, Utica, NY
Wassaic Project, Artist Residency Fellowship, Wassaic, NY
2019
The Puffin Foundation, Artist Grant, Teaneck, NJ
Queens Council on the Arts (QCA), New Work Grant, Queens, NY
Virginia Center for the Creative Arts (VCCA), Bethea Scott Owen Fellowship, Amherst, VA
2018
Manhattan Graphic Center, Scholarship, New York, NY
Elevision Digital Media Broadcast, Emerging Artist Award, Dubai, UAE
2017
Tao Hua Tan Artist Retreat & Painting Residency, Tao Hua Tan, Anhui, China
Yaddo, Saratoga Springs, NY (wait listed)
2016
Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art (MASS MoCA), Visiting Artist Fellowship, North Adams, MA
The Bronx Museum of the Arts, Artist in the Marketplace (AIM), Bronx, NY
New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA), Immigrant Artist Mentoring Program, Brooklyn, NY
Jamaica Center for Arts and Learning (JCAL), First Friday Artist Residency Program, Queens, NY
Main Line Art Center, Meyer Family Award for Contemporary Art, Haverford, PA
2015
Cooper Union School of Art, Teaching Artist Residency Fellowship, New York, NY
The Griffis Art Center, Artist Residency MAISON des ARTISTES, New London, CT
The League Residency at Vyt, Ruth Katzman Scholarship, Sparkill, NY
Newhouse Center for Contemporary Art at Snug Harbor, Van Lier Residency Fellowship, Staten Island, NY
2014
Montgomery College, Visiting Artist in Residence (AIR), Fall Semester, Silver Spring, MD
2013
Vermont Studio Center, Artist Residency Grant, Johnson, VT
Platte Clove, Arkville, NY
Montgomery Community College, Scholarship, Iranian American Academics and Professionals, Rockville, MD
State University of New York, Research and Creative Project Award, New Paltz, NY
Aljira, A Center for Contemporary Art, Exhibition Award ViewPoints 2013, Newark, NJ
State University of New York, Artist Residency Grant, New Paltz, NY
State University of New York, David Lavallee Travel Grant, New Paltz, NY
ArtSlant, ArtSlant Prize 1st Showcase Winner, New York, NY
2012
Kimball Art Center, Artist Residency Fellowship, Relevant 2012, Park City, UT
The International School of Painting, Drawing, & Sculpture, Umbria, Italy
State University of New York, Conference Grant, New Paltz, NY
State University of New York, Research Grant, New Paltz, NY
State University of New York, Graduate Scholarship, New Paltz, NY
2025
Between Walls: The Geometry of Emotion, University of Dallas, Beatrice M. Haggerty Art Gallery, Irving, TX
2022-2023
Zahra Nazari: A Retrospective, Cinema Supply Gallery, NY
2021
Unification, High Line Nine Gallery, (curated by Roya Khadjavi Projects), New York, NY
2019-2020
Zahra Nazari Studios’ Selected Work, ABS Engineering, PLLC, New York, NY
2019
Uprooted, Chashama, Queens, NY (funded by the Queens Council on the Arts and the Puffin Foundation)
Before and After, The Arts of Ken Morgan & Zahra Nazari (2-person exhibition), Eclipse Mill Gallery, North Adams, MA
2017
Remnants, Five Points Gallery, Torrington, CT
Transformation, Pennsylvania College of Technology, Williamsport, PA
2016
Vanishing Point, Gallery Aferro, Newark, NJ
Transformations, Betsy Meyer Memorial Exhibition, Main Line Art Center, Haverford, PA
2015
Metamorphosis, The Cooper Union School of Art, New York, NY
Metamorphosis 2, Mooney Center Gallery, The College of New Rochelle, NY
Urban Façade, MAISON des ARTISTES, The Griffis Art Center, New London, CT
2014
Points of Departure, MFA Thesis Exhibition, Samuel Dorsky Museum of Art, New Paltz, NY
Inside Out, Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation Arts Center, Silver Spring, MD
2013-2014
Deconstructing Scapes, Hartnett Gallery, University of Rochester, NY
2013
Selected Work, Gallery I, Vermont Studio Center, Johnson, VT
2008
Zahra Nazari’s Selected Work, Baran Gallery Tehran, Iran
2024
Hamptons Fine Art Fair, Southampton, NY
Far and Wide 2024, Woodstock Artists Association & Museum, Woodstock, NY
D‘Est, Waave Foundation, New York, NY
2023-2024
Interplay, Hollis Taggart Gallery, New York, NY
Betsy Meyer 20th Anniversary Retrospective, Main Line Art Center, Haverford, PA
Invisible Bodies, curated by The Border Gallery and Emireth Herrera Valdés, HUB Robeson Galleries, Penn State University, PA
2023
Iranian Voices: Women in Solidarity, SOHO20, Brooklyn, NY
Brazil X Iran, curated by Roya Khadjavi Projects & Flavia Tamoyo, High Line Nine Gallery, NY
2022
National Prize, curated by Barbara O’Brien, Cambridge Art Association, Cambridge, MA
Together/Somewhere, Visionary Projects & Art City Works, New York, NY (online)
2021
Looking Forward, curated by Nancy Azara, Carter Burden Gallery, New York, NY
What If, curated by Kourosh Mahboubian, Filo Sofi Arts Gallery, Cranford, NJ
Our Tears are Sweet, Our Laughter Venomous, Eastern Connecticut State University, Willimantic, CT
Crossing Borders, Kendal Art Center, Miami, FL (Sponsored by the National Endowment for the Arts)
NYFA’s Benefit Auction, New York Foundation for the Arts, New York, NY
2020
Forget What You Know, curated by Kourosh Mahboubian, Art of Our Century, New York, NY
Kundiman Silent Auction, Ace Hotel, New York, NY
31st Charity Art Auction, Sculpture Space, Utica, NY
Spring Flash, Equity Gallery, New York, NY (online)
Selected Works, Online Exhibition, Art in Res, New York, NY
Support New York: Online Fundraiser for hospitals and artists, New York, NY
Art Virus 2020, Traveling Exhibit in Korea, Gallery Giant’s Garden, Jeju, Space Vanana Project, Daegu, Gyeongmin Museum of Contemporary Art, Uijeongbu, Art & Craft Museum, Jeollanam-do
2019-2020
Decentralized, Mana Contemporary, Jersey City, NJ
2019
Boccara Art Open Call, Boccara Art Gallery, Brooklyn, NY
Auction, Space 776, Brooklyn, NY
69th Aone, curated by Bill Carroll, Silvermine Galleries, New Canaan, CT
New York Academy of Art, New York, NY
2018-2019
Art from the Boros VI, Denise Bibro Fine Art, New York, NY
The 2019 Flat file: Year Six, Tiger Strikes Asteroid, New York, NY
2018
Governors Island Art Fair, Governors Island, NY
CMYK, Carrie Able Gallery, Brooklyn, NY
2017
AIM 2017 Biennale, The Bronx Museum of the Arts, Bronx, NY
International Artist’s Creation Camp at the Edge of Peach Blossom Pond, Xuancheng Museum, Xuancheng, Anhui, China
Portal 2017, 4Heads Portal SOHO, New York, NY
BCNA, Korean American Association of Greater New York, NY
Press: Pause, curated by Shannon Stratton, Williamsburg Art & Historical Center, Brooklyn, NY
Small Works, National Association of Women Artists, New York, NY
BCNA Benefit Exhibition, 524 West 26th Street, New York, NY
2016
Borderless: In Perspective, curated by David C. Terry, Lite-Haus Galerie, Berlin, Germany
(Un)Common Space(s), Spartanburg Art Museum, Spartanburg, SC
Futuristic Fabrication, Jamaica Center for Arts and Learning (JCAL), Queens, NY
Imaginary Places, curated by Linda Streicher, Studio Montclair, Montclair, NJ
2015
Silk Journey to Art, World Tour Exhibition, The China Millennium Monument, Beijing, China
Borrowed Paths, Broken Rules, curated by George Sferra, Gowanus Ballroom, Brooklyn, NY
Spatial Planes & Timeless Dimensions, curated by Akaash Mehta & Minna Packer, 555 West 25 St, New York, NY
2014
3rd Annual Juried International Exhibition of Contemporary Islamic Art, LuminArte Gallery, Dallas, TX
Emergence 2014: International Artists to Watch, curated by Deana Haggag & Sharon Burton Galerie Myrtis, Baltimore, MD
PINNACLE 2014, Foster Tanner Fine Arts Gallery, Florida A&M University, Tallahassee, FL
51st Annual Juried Competition, curated by Kelly Shindler, Masur Museum of Art, Monroe, LA
Ardent Rift, Kingston Museum of Contemporary Art, Kingston, NY
2013
Abstract Paintings, SUNY Global Center, New York, NY
Relevant 2013 Show, Kimball Art Center, Park City, UT
Working it out, curated by Mona Brody, Alyce Gottesman and Jo Ann Rothschild, Painting Center, New York, NY
ViewPoints 2013, curated by Helaine Posner, Aljira, A Center for Contemporary Art, Newark, NJ
I am Tahmineh, Palace of Fine Arts, San Francisco, CA
2012
Worldview, curated by Chuck Gniech, Gallery 180, Illinois Institute of Art, Chicago, IL
Collector Exchange Exhibit, The Yard Event Center, Park City, UT
Summer Show, Galleria ISA, Umbria, Italy
6th Annual Master Pieces, Manifest Gallery, Cincinnati, OH
Reroot, curated by Missy Miller, Clifton Cultural Arts Center, Cincinnati, OH
National Wet Paint, curated by Sergio Gomez, Zhou B Art Center, Chicago, IL
Twenty in Their Twenties, curated by Betsy Odom, Woman Made Gallery, Chicago, IL
2009
Color of Kindness, Iranian Center for International Conferences, Tehran, Iran
2008
Youth Art, 4th Visual Arts Festival, Homa Art Gallery, Tehran, Iran
2006
Islamic World, 4th International Painting Biennial, Saba Institution, Tehran, Iran
2024
Bronx Council on the Arts (BCA), Bronx, NY, (panelist), Bronx Recognizes Its Own (BRIO) Award Panel Review
2021
Eastern Connecticut State University, Willimantic, CT, (panelist), “Iranian American Artists in Conversation,” moderated by Roya Farassat
2020
Kourosh Mahboubian & Filo Sofi Arts Gallery, New York, NY, “Disclosures Through Dialogue: Zahra Nazari”
New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA), Brooklyn, NY, (mentor), NYFA Immigrant Artist Mentoring Program
Queens Council on the Arts (QCA), Queens, NY, (panelist), New Work Grant Panel Review
2019
Chashama Gallery, Queens, NY, (artist talk)
MAISON 10, New York, NY, (artist talk)
2018
City College of New York, NY, (panelist), Graduate Committee Panel
Asian American Alliance, Materials for the Arts, Queens, NY, (artist talk)
Carrie Able Gallery, Brooklyn, NY, (artist talk)
2017
Five Points Gallery, Torrington, CT, (artist talk)
Eastern Connecticut University, Willimantic, CT, (visiting artist lecture)
Pennsylvania College of Technology, Williamsport, PA, (artist talk)
2016
Columbia University, Teachers College, New York, NY, (panelist)
Main Line Art Center, Haverford, PA (artist talk)
Jamaica Center for Arts and Learning, Queens, NY, (artist talk)
St. John’s University, Queens, NY, (guest speaker), “Ex-patriot women artists from the so-called “Islamic World”, moderated by Maymanat Farhat
2015
Pratt Institute, Higgins Hall, Brooklyn, NY, (guest critic), Final Juries of Design/Architecture
The Cooper Union, Rose Auditorium, New York, NY, (artist talk)
2014
Cafritz Foundation Arts Center, Silver Spring, MD, (visiting artist lecture)
2013
Hartnett Gallery, University of Rochester, Rochester, NY, (visiting artist lecture)
NYU, Asian/Pacific/American Institute, New York, NY (artist talk)
2012
Kimball Art Center, Park City, UT, (artist talk)
2023
Flores, Nayeli Hernández, “Zahra Nazari | The Essence of the Abstract”, THECore Design Magazine, Mexico City (December 14th, 2023)
Yaniv, Etty. “Zahra Nazari: Interiors”, (interview), Art Spiel, (December 8th, 2023)
EXH 11, Floorr Magazine (Oct 2023)
Suboart Magazine #10, Lisbon, Portugal, (Sep 2023)
Iranian Voices: Women in Solidarity, SOHO20, (interview) (Aug 2023)
Nwonukwue, Ada. “Studio Visit Artist: Zahra Nazari,” (interview), I Like Your Work (Aug 10, 2023)
Mills, Sarah. “Studio Sunday: Zahra Nazari,” Create Magazine (May 28, 2023)
Hrbacek, Mary. “NYC’s High Line Gallery 4: Brazil x Iran Colors and Forms,” (review), Artes Magazine (Feb 14, 2023)
Nevest, Nancy. “Brazil X Iran, Colors and Forms,” (review), New Art Examiner – The Independent Voice of the Visual Arts (Feb 8, 2023)
2022
“Iranian-American Zahra Nazari’s abstract architectural paintings bring together two distinct worlds,” (review) Art Review City (Oct 11, 2022)
2021
Busch, Michael. “Zahra Nazari: Unification at High Line Nine Gallery 9.1, NYC,” (review), Artefuse (May 17, 2021)
Media coverage of Unification Exhibition, (interview), Voice of America (VOA) (May 15, 2021)
Media coverage of Unification Exhibition, Interview, Tehran Art Scene (May 12, 2021)
Nevest, Nancy. “Unification,” (review), Artscope Magazine Artscope Magazine (May 10, 2021)
Volk, Gregory. “Unification,” (catalog essay), (April 16, 2021)
McCoy, Chris. “Craig’s Brewer Spaceship,” (review) Memphis Magazine (April 5, 2021)
2020
“Heightened Perceptions,” (review), Ante Magazine (November 13, 2020)
“Forget What You Know” Whitehot Magazine (September 23,2020)
2019
Vora, Shivani. “In Chelsea, a Little Piece of Prerevolutionary Iran,” (review), New York Times (Nov 21, 2019)
“Zahra Nazari: Metamorphosing Gestures,” (interview), Art Spiel (September 2, 2019)
“Zahra Nazari Explores Identity with Architectonic Paintings,” (interview) Artqol magazine (March 1, 2019)
2018
“Art Break: Governors Island Hosts an Art Fair and New Exhibits Kick Off the Season at Galleries Around Town,” (review), ZEALnyc (September 2018)
Kaufman, Celeste. “Zahra Nazari Exploring Identity in Abstractions inspired by Architecture,” (interview), Hamptons Art Hub (July 2018)
“SUNY New Paltz Alumna Dazzles Art World,” (interview), The New Paltz Oracle (Feb 1, 2018)
“MFA alumna getting international exposure in galleries and print,” SUNY New Paltz Alumna News (Jan 18, 2018)
2017
“Bronx Calling,” (exhibition catalog), Bronx Museum of the Arts (June 2017)
ZH Magazine (September 2017)
Steinhauer, Jillian. “Passing Through Portal, an Unpretentious Art Fair in Soho,” (review), Hyperallergic (May 2, 2017)
Hamptons Art Hub, Ultimate Guide to the NYC Art Fairs of Frieze Week 2017 (May 1, 2017)
“The Allure of Architecture: An Interview with Zahra Nazari,” The Aftab Committee (February 27, 2017)
2016
Paint Pulse Magazine, Issue 6, Juror: Schultz, Suzanne.
Art Reveal Magazine, Issue 19 (August 2016)
“The Best of 2016 International Emerging Artists Award of Dubai.” Pixalib (March 2016)
Brewer, Don. “Transformations” Philadelphia, PA DoNArTNeWs
Art File Magazine, Emerging Artist Grant
2015
“Summer Art intensive Program Exhibition,” (exhibition catalog), NYC: Cooper Union School of Art (August 2015)
Brown, A. Will. “Fan Mail: Zahra Nazari,” (review), Daily Serving (July 10, 2015)
“Summer 2015 Issue,” Ruminate Magazine
2014
Downs, David. “Polonium No2 NonObject,” Sprocketbox Entertainment Cultural Arts Organization (December 20, 2014)
Lonardi, Matteo. “Artistic Spring: Zahra Nazari,” (interview), Citizen Brooklyn (May 2014)
Libbey, David. “Zahra Nazari brings her world to Rochester,” (review), University of Rochester: Campus Times (Jan 23, 2014)
2013
“Residencies for Artists and Writers, Photograph. Vermont Studio School.” Bomb Magazine 125 (Fall 2013)
“Working it out Exhibition,” Painting Center (July 2013)
“International Painting Annual 3 Exhibition in Print”, Manifest Gallery, Cincinnati, OH
2012
“Abstract Art Contest,” Artist Portfolio Magazine, issue 8
“6th Annual Master Pieces Exhibition 2012,” Cincinnati, OH: Manifest Gallery
James, Damien. “Twenty in their twenties,” Art Voice Magazine (April 2012)
The China Millennium Monument, Beijing, China
Tao Hua Tan Artist Retreat, Anhui, China
Freedom Capital Markets & LD Micro, New York, NY
State University of New York, New Paltz, NY
Manhattan Graphics Center, New York, NY
Chashama, New York, NY
The Griffis Art Center, New London, CT
Private Collection, Paris, France
Private Collection, Yokohama, Japan
Private Collection, Vancouver, Canada
Private Collection, New York, NY
Private Collection, Santa Monica, CA
Private Collection, Los Angeles, CA
Private Collection, San Diego, CA
Private Collection, La Jolla, CA
Private Collection, Miami, FL
Private Collection, Hoboken, NJ
Private Collection, Baltimore, MD
Private Collection, Dallas, TX
Private Collection, Washington, DC
Private Collection, Memphis, TN
Private Collection, Sharon, CT
Private Collection, Park City, Utah