Visual artist Mohammad Hossein Abbasi depicts the process immigrants face in rebuilding their lives in a new country built around a different culture, social norms and political system
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| Mohammad Hossein Abbasi's collection of art on the immigrant experience is currently on display at the Art Gallery of St. Albert until Jan. 31, 2026. Courtesy Art Gallery of St. Albert and St. Albert Gazette. |
by Anna Borowiecki, St. Albert Gazette
In its final exhibition of the season, the Art Gallery of St. Albert (AGSA) launches The Home by Edmonton-based visual artist Mohammad Hossein Abbasi.
The exhibition features the slow and difficult process and emotions immigrants face while integrating into a new culture and a new land without losing their sense of self.
“The Home’s conversational theme and title is a search for belonging, stability and understanding in a new place and how that changes over time,” said Emily Baker, AGSA curator.
The Iranian artist originally lived in Tehran and trained as a civil engineer while at the same time studying painting. Abbasi and his wife moved to Edmonton in 2021 so he could work towards an MFA in painting at the University of Alberta.
“It was also hard to make ends meet even though both he and his wife had good jobs, and it (political situation) was becoming more precarious in Tehran,” Baker said. Currently, Abbasi is employed as a graphic designer and teaches painting.
She describes Abbasi as an artist whose visual work speaks with intellectual ease.
“He is a kind gentleman who is soft spoken. He does an amazing amount of research into his practice and the immigrant experience. He has read books on philosophy, psychology, sociology – everything he could get his hands on. One book he found impactful was Homi Bhabha’s The Location of Culture. It talks about how identity changes through the immigrant experience and is constantly shifting,” said Baker.
She goes on to explain Abbasi’s vision is based on immigrants occupying the third space.
“It’s not where they were, or will be, but instead they’re in a third space – the transition space. They’re not fully here and not where they will be. It’s an in between place. And naturally, the in betweenness became the emotional core of the artwork.”
The artist’s materials of choice are acrylic on canvass, charcoal on paper, graphite and the odd collage. Immigrants often feel a sense of aloneness and instability in their new surroundings. Echoing these emotions, Abbasi depicts roiling waves as dominant subjects in his works.
“You see lots of people fleeing conflict zones, crossing bodies of water. You see people at sea looking for a new life. Waves of humanity make sacrifices, leaving their homeland by sea, knowing it can be dangerous.”
In the eight-foot-tall charcoal on paper titled Wounded Wave, a huge wave is about to crest and crash and “one can feel the push-pull of waves and the awe and danger it produces.”
And in several Untitled acrylic on canvases, unstable houses without supports are floating on water. Vulnerable to an unexpected storm, the houses could sink or be smashed into matchsticks at any given moment. Upsetting surprises are part of the immigrant experience, particularly if one does not speak the common language.
“The emotion in his paintings is really powerful. So many people in Canada have an immigrant narrative. This is a place where we can feel the immigrant experience our grandparents went through. It’s scary, but hopeful. It’s about rebuilding connections and a shared sense of belonging. The paintings are spectacular, and you can constantly see new details. Mohammad is a very skilled artist. He has so many approaches to drawing and there is something for everyone.”
In addition to wall art, Abbasi also features a 10-foot looping projection hanging from the ceiling that challenges the viewer to interpret its meaning.
The Home is currently on display at AGSA’s main gallery until Jan. 31. A reception and artist talk with Abassi on Saturday, Dec. 13, from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. In-person tours take place Dec. 11 at noon and Jan. 22 at 6:30 p.m. A virtual tour is on Jan. 14 at noon on Facebook Live.
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