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We interviewed Ali Tahayori at his home and studio in Newtown, Sydney, a long way from his hometown of Shiraz, Iran. Ali moved to Australia from Iran in 2007 after imprisonment and torture for being gay became unsustainable to remain in his homeland .  We discovered Ali at the NAS MFA Exhibition where he showed his impressive broken mirror artworks and video installation.

'Born and raised in the oppressively homophobic climate of 1980s Iran, Ali Tahayori assumed the identity of an outsider, further compounded by his migration to Australia in 2007. Combing fractured mirrors with text and imagery, his recent works draw on ancient Iranian philosophies about light and mirrors to create kaleidoscopic experiences; moments of both revelation and concealment hint at the conflicted nature of his identity. 

Translating the traditional Iranian craft of Āine-Kāri (mirror-works) into a contemporary visual vocabulary, his practice skillfully combines a discourse about diaspora and displacement with an exploration of queerness – in both cases, poignantly testifying to his experience of being othered. He holds a Doctorate in Medicine, a Graduate Diploma in Photography, and a Master of Fine Arts in Photomedia from Sydney’s National Art School. His work has been extensively exhibited in Iran, Europe and Australia.'

Ali is also a photographer, winning the 2022 Prix Yves Hernot Photography Award and in 2021 the peoples choice winner Bowness Photography award.  Ali continues working as a rehabilitation doctor in Sydney whilst being a very busy artist.

Congratulations Ali, your work is so multi-layered in meaning and beauty that we think you have a very long career ahead of you.

You can see Ali's work in his upcoming show, 'The Sky is the Same',  at Gosford Regional Art Gallery from April 1-June 4 2023. Opening Friday 14 April at 6pm. 

He is represented by This Is No Fantasy in Melbourne.