Images of the 40,000 Iranians killed by the regime January 8-9, 2026. I draw to remember their names and to honor their memory.
You decide who will appear in Artforum Magazine, take home $25,000, and display their work at The Art of Elysium's Salon!
Portraits are my passion. Something deeply human about capturing a face. The eyes specially. I use pencil and watercolor and I’m still very much learning. I would not call myself an artist, just someone who is compelled to draw. Each portrait is my way of connecting to the subject and their story.
Where do you find inspiration?Every night I listen to a journalist. Mr. Morad Vaisi’s podcast, where he reads the names of the Iranians killed fighting for freedom. I started writing their names down, then googling their faces, then drawing them. That became my project, sketching every portrait, one by one. It’s painful and sacred at the same time. I draw them so they are not forgotten. I keep drawing, but the names keep coming. We remain hopeful and fight for freedom.
What would you do with $25,000?I’d donate a portion to Mr. Morad Vaisi, a journalist who gives thousands of us hope every night. The rest I would use to publish my portraits as a book, honoring every person who died fighting for Irans freedom. Any proceedings would go back into the same fight. This was never about money. It’s about these faces, these names, are never erased.
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