work statement
“Welcome To The Whimsical World Of Gol Pari Joon” explores Parisa’s obsessive fascination with ‘Pari’ (Persian mythical pixies) and experimented with virtual worldbuilding to visualize the immersive portal this concept has been for them – and became a means of healing for their diasporic longings. Parisa draws inspiration from the mythology of these celebrated supernatural figures who are protectors of the natural order… Gol Pari Joon (translates to ‘Flower Pixie Dear’) has been a beloved concept for songs and film that has seen many iterations through the times, just as Pari’s have been the source of inspiration across the ages for many Iranian art forms… Parisa is reimagining “Gol Pari Joon” as an alter-ego character, while subverting its more recent cis-heteronormative depictions by injecting queer and camp aesthetics of ‘Bizzare Ballroom’. Reclaiming the transformative and magical powers of ‘Gol Pari Joon’ as an act of co-creation and the queering of their Iranian culture towards futurity. While the cyber aesthetics nods towards the intermary third-space that the cyber platforms such as social media have played –not only in Iran where public gathering and discourse has been long suppressed– but also among displaced Iranians during these times of the Woman Life Freedom revolution.
artist bio
Parisa Rafat is a non-binary trans masc queer, first generation Iranian settler, Parisa is a multidisciplinary and multi-media artist, who’s eyes gleam at the idea of world building. They are currently completing their Masters of Architecture degree, while their artistic practices include spatial design, place-making, digital modeling, sculptural art, fashion design, styling, visual art, photography, and film.