Yosra Emamizadeh (b. Pennsylvania, USA, 1987) is an Iranian American artist based in Dubai. She started drawing from a young age while growing up in Tehran. After completing her studies at the American University of Beirut, she attended the Angel Academy of Art in Florence to study classical drawing, and later earned her master’s degree in Museum Studies from Harvard University.
Yosra has developed a devotional and faith-based approach to her painting practice, which often encompasses elements from Islamic art and sacred geometry. In her recent series of still life drawings and paintings, she explores the passing of time by tracing moments in the life of fruits and placing them within texturised backdrops that combine elements from nature and geometry. While many see still lifes rooted in philisophocal ideas of memento mori, where the focus is on the signs of death’s rapid approach, the artist’s perspective is not geared towards the finality of death but rather the time in between.
In 2021, Yosra presented “Nafs”, a solo exhibition part of the 24th Sharjah Islamic Festival at the Sharjah Art Museum, Sharjah, UAE. She has participated in several exhibitions in the UAE and USA, including The Philosophy of Food, Tashkeel, Dubai (2022); Isolated, But Not Alone, The Aerogramme Center for Arts and Culture, USA (2021); Made in Tashkeel, Tashkeel, Dubai (2021 and 2019); and Nasty Women Boston, Laconia Gallery, Boston, MA (2017). Yosra co-curated Reclamation Exhibition I & II: Emerging Female Artists of New England, Sommerville, MA, USA (2015). Her works are in private collections in the UAE and abroad.