Biography
Saba Raisian is a multidisciplinary artist from Iran who holds a BA in Photography from Tehran University of Art and an MFA in Media from Southern Illinois University Carbondale in the United States. Her work explores themes of identity, empathy, migration, and social barriers through live performance and conceptual installations.
Notable projects include The Other (2024), a happening at MoMA that explores the political, gendered, and geographical dimensions of “otherness.” Here (2024), a performance that addresses gender stereotypes and trauma. and I Am a Citizen of the Earth (2020), while also addressing climate change and fostering warmth and connection. In Saba Packed Her Possessions (2023), she addresses migration and collective trauma, while her current project, Marz, uses clay installations to challenge barriers of division both geographically and subjectively.
“I am a Citizen of Earth” Performance
Humans are feeling sadness…
Earth is feeling sadness…
People are dying from natural disasters…
One father kills another son in war…
One husband kills another wife in war…
Each person is a mother, father, daughter, son, sister, brother, or friend to somebody.
The reason for killing another person is just delusion.
My country is Earth. My country is the World.
And I am a Citizen of the World. Borders are established by other people…
“Here” Performance
Every dress tells a story and carries a trauma, reflecting the labels imposed by society. This performance is a revolution a journey to embrace who we truly are, beyond religious, political, and social prejudices that shape identities in our respective geographies. As we wear each other’s clothes, we step into each other’s narratives, confronting the discomfort of labels assigned by society, family, social media, and capitalism labels rooted in dogma, ideologies, and norms that restrict and control. By shedding these clothes, we also shed the constraints of these imposed identities, connecting more deeply with our bodies, our true selves, and each other. In doing so, we transcend the limitations of external constructs and enter a space of authenticity, solidarity, and shared humanity. This performance is an act of reclaiming agency, rejecting division, and embracing the diversity that unites us, transforming prejudices into collective strength and freedom.
“The Other” recently happening at MOMA
