For Display
-
Sadegh Tirafkan, photographer and conceptual artist, was born in 1965 (1344 in the Iranian calendar) in the city of Karbala, Iraq, to Iranian parents. In 1973, due to political pressures, he and his family migrated to Iran. As a teenager, he attended courses at the Institute for the Intellectual Development of Children and Young Adults, where he discovered his passion for art. Tirafkan began his artistic career in theater and cinema and also experimented with making short films. Eventually, he was admitted to the Photography program at the Faculty of Fine Arts, University of Tehran, and graduated in 1990 (1369 Iranian calendar). Because of his approach to photography—incorporating various media and post-photographic techniques—he is regarded as a conceptual artist. Tirafkan’s works have been exhibited in numerous solo and group exhibitions, including in Tehran, Paris, Toronto, New York, and Brussels. His first solo exhibition took place in 1989 (1368) at the Mansoureh Hosseini Gallery. His final solo show was titled “The First Steps” and was held in 2012 (1391) at Homa Gallery. Some of his photographic works are part of the permanent collections of major museums such as the Brooklyn Museum in New York, the British Museum, and the Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art. Tirafkan’s works have also been featured and sold in the Tehran Auction and in several prominent international art auctions. After battling cancer, Sadegh Tirafkan passed away in 2013 (1392) in Toronto, Canada. He was buried in the city of Rey, Iran.
Resume
Solo Exhibitions
1989
Solo Exhibition, Mansoureh Hosseini Gallery, Tehran
1991
Solo Exhibition, Mansoureh Hosseini Gallery, Tehran
Solo Exhibition, Seyhoun Gallery, Tehran
1995
Solo Exhibition, Seyhoun Gallery, Tehran
1998
Solo Exhibition, Seyhoun Gallery, Tehran
2001
Solo Exhibition, Seyhoun Gallery, Tehran
2011
Solo Exhibition, AB Gallery, Lucerne
Solo Exhibition, Nuova Morone Gallery, Milan
Solo Exhibition, Etemad Gallery, Dubai
2012
Solo Exhibition, First Steps, Homa Gallery, Tehran
2024
Solo Exhibition, A Look at Sadegh Tirafkan’s Photography, Homa Gallery, Tehran
Group Exhibitions
1986
Group Exhibition, Ketab-e Azad Gallery, Tehran
1988
Group Exhibition, First Annual Festival of Iranian Photography, Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art
1991
Group Exhibition, Fourth Annual Festival of Iranian Photography, Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art
1996
Group Exhibition, Five Iranian Photographers, Paris
2001
Group Exhibition, 20 Years of Photography in Iran – 40 Iranian Photographers, Espace Electra, Paris
Group Exhibition, Fifth Photo Festival of Aleppo, Syria
Group Exhibition, Hammurabi: The Laws, Tehran
2002
Group Exhibition, The Secret of Words, Second Conceptual Art Exhibition, Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art
Group Exhibition, Memory of Stones, City Museum of Fine Arts, Fréjus, France
Group Exhibition, Stone of Memory, Ancient Heritage Agency, France
Group Exhibition, 20 Years of Photography in Iran – 40 Iranian Photographers, Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art
2011
Group Exhibition, Gifts of the Sultan, Los Angeles Municipal Art Museum
Group Exhibition, Gifts of the Sultan, Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, USA
2012
Group Exhibition, Gender and Exposure, Gallery 44, Toronto
Group Exhibition, Codes, SAW Gallery, Ottawa
2014
Group Exhibition, So Gently It Sinks, Azad Art Gallery, Tehran
2019
Group Exhibition, 40–50–60, Azad Art Gallery, Tehran
Group Exhibition, Dance Dance Dance, Bermondsey Project Space, London
Group Exhibition, Me, Atelier Kaboud Gallery, Tabriz
Group Exhibition, Me, Emrooz Gallery, Isfahan
2020
Group Exhibition, Me, Hahn Gallery, Shiraz
2023
Group Exhibition, In Tribute to Le Imagineer, Yafteh Gallery, Tehran
2024
Group Exhibition, The Collector, Artibition Gallery, Tehran
Group Exhibition, Forty, Thirty, Artibition Gallery, Tehran
2025
Group Exhibition, Reclaiming / Series 7, Nian Gallery, Tehran
Projects & Multimedia Works
1994
Photography Project: Empty Walls in Tehran
1995
Photography Project: Persepolis
1997
Photography Project: Ashura
Video Installation: Persepolis, Tehran
1999
Short Video Film on Air Pollution, Tehran
2000
Photography Series: The Iranian Man
Multimedia Installation: Children of the Dark City
Photography Project: Portraits on Manuscript
Video Art: Ashura
2001
Multimedia Project: Ashura (photographs, video, and painting installation)
Photography Project: Curves of the Body
2002
Photographic Series: The Iranian Man
Multimedia Work: Scenes (photography and video)
Art Fairs
2002
Paris Photo, represented by VU Gallery, France
