Bio:
I have been actively drawing, painting, and creating art for the past 33 years. My inspiration in creating art was partly a mental reaction to dealing with the political circumstances of 1979 Iranian revolution and leaving Iran prematurely at age of 11 to attend boarding school in Hastings, England. The other underlying reason for my inspiration for creating art was tied to understanding why I was here on this earth and what was my purpose in living.
After attending 4 years of boarding school in England, I came to the United States. I completed BSc in Chemical Engineering, MSc in Civil Engineering, and recently finished my Juris Doctor degree in Law. During all the years I continued to draw and paint actively, showing at galleries in Sacramento, San Francisco, and Los Angeles. I work with mixed media including pen and ink, acrylic, and oils. I have also worked with plaster and ceramics.
In 2008, I started the ATUSSA Clothing label (www.atussa.com) that was based on my pen and ink work. My vision was that art belongs to the masses and when art is worn, the person becomes a walking, breathing, living canvas. The name ATUSSA was based on the Persian Queen Atussa (Daughter of Cyrus, wife of Darius, and mother of Xerxes) for her leadership, strength, and command of the Persian empire during the absence of the King. Today, Atussa has grown in many dimensions and ATUSSA stands for “A True Understanding of Seductively Sexy Art”. It has become a platform of a select group of artist to showcase their art and talent.
The clothing label is divided into the Express line featuring my original pen and inks printed on clothing garments, and the Couture line featuring one-of-a-kind clothing garments that are hand-made, hand-drawn, and hand- stitched with chain-mail and other art forms. Today we are one of San Francisco’s leading independent fashion designers with our signature style participating in numerous fashion shows and have an ongoing virtual store (www.atussastore.com).
I have been successfully performing live art for the past 2 years at events for entertainment, cultural, political, and humanitarian organizations. I never plan any piece that I start and the art is inspired by the theme or cause, music, and the energy at the event. The pieces are usually sold at the venue or donated to the cause. My style has evolved over the 3 decades of my artistic expression and my latest style is a combination of pen and ink with acrylic and oils.
The inspiration for my art today is my thirst for life, my active lifestyle, and a continuing spiritual journey. I have been teaching indoor cycle for the last 3 years and love inspiring people to be more active, healthy, and confident in themselves. I completed my first Ironman 70.3 event (triathlon-1.2 mile swim, 56 mile bike, and 13.2 mile run) this year in California and I am training for the Kona World Championship Ironman in 2012.
