WELCOME SORRY
BFA Final Project
Welcome, Sorry is about my hunt to find a new place to name home in 2015. Being a millennial growing up in the Silicon Valley there is a strong disconnection between me and my hometown, San Jose. I photograph San Jose trying to find a new association, and I photograph new cities to find a place to be welcomed. Welcome, Sorry is my diary of home and my way to cope with San Jose and the way it is changing and growing further and further away from me.
Feeling Fem
2016
ARTIST STATEMENT
UNTITLED
2014
ARTIST STATEMENT
NEW ZEALAND
2016
ARTIST STATMENT
TETE
2017
ARTIST STATEMENT 4X5
ONLY HALF ft. Poem by Marissa Ahmandkhani
2015
I avoided writing this down. The notion of delving into my identity at this moment feels somewhat self-indulgent and futile. Yet, I cannot shake off the memories of the world in which I was brought up—a world that urged me to conceal, that instilled in me a disdain for my Arabness. And I recognize that understanding myself and my culture is an act of resistance. Since then, I’ve studied its history, read articles, while witnessing the distant horrors unfold like an unending nightmare.
Each protest, each attack only drew me nearer to Palestine. In 2017, I created this zine, capturing the struggle of unearthing my cultural roots with no guidance. It felt akin to cracking open a watermelon without tools—an arduous endeavor. Ultimately, I had to sink my teeth in, pry it apart with my hands. Since that year, I’ve heartbreakingly and lovingly savored the sweet fruit of Palestine.
