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The Fabric Dye Portraits of Orkideh Torabi

Working with fabric dye on cotton, Iranian artist Orkideh Torabi creates scenes and portraits that poke fun at the men behind patriarchal societies. The works are tethered to the history of her home country, taking influence from antique Persian miniatures. The artist is currently based in Chicago.

Working with fabric dye on cotton, Iranian artist Orkideh Torabi creates scenes and portraits that poke fun at the men behind patriarchal societies. The works are tethered to the history of her home country, taking influence from antique Persian miniatures. The artist is currently based in Chicago.

She makes “paintings that lampoon patriarchal societies, depicting men as absurd clown-like figures, drawing attention to the personal, political and social issues facing women,” Chicago Artists Coalitions says. “By portraying the figures in her paintings with cartoonish whimsy, she is trying to strip the male oppressors of their power by undermining the culture of machismo that pervades many societies.”

See more of her works below.

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