CURRENT CURATORIAL PROJECTS
2024 In Search of a Loss of Self: The Language of Alterity, works from McIntosh Gallery’s Permanent Collection curated by Soheila Esfahani & Mélika Hashemi, McIntosh Gallery, London, ON, September 20-December 7
2024 Negotiating Culture, selected works by Grand River Artist Collective members, curated by Soheila Esfahani, , Flex Space at 44 Gaukel, Kitchener, ON, October 31- November 10
SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2024 Are You Buying These with Loonies or Toonies?, curated by Shannon Bingeman, Tom Thomson Art Gallery, Owen Sound, ON
2023 Cultured Pallets: Aga Khan Museum, site-specific installation at the Aga Khan Museum, curated by Bita Pourvash, Toronto, ON.
2023 The Tool That Could Part Tangled Things, Red Head Gallery, Toronto, ON.
2022-23 Been T[here], Cambridge Art Galleries (Preston Gallery), Cambridge, ON.
2022 Been T[here], Red Head Gallery, Toronto, ON.
2019 Cultured Pallets: True North, site-specific installation at the True North conference, Kitchener, ON.
2019 Pattern (dis)Placement, Red Head Gallery, Toronto, ON.
2019 Pattern (dis)Placement, Redeemer University College Gallery, Ancaster, ON.
2018 Cultural Translation, Grebel Gallery at Centre for Peace Advancement, Conrad Grebel University College, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON
2018 Interstice, Station Gallery, Whitby, ON.
2018. Interstice, Ross Creek Centre for the Arts, Canning, NS.
2017 Immigrants, University of Waterloo Art Gallery, Waterloo, ON.
2017 Interstice, The Red Head Gallery, Toronto, ON.
2017 Artist’s Project, Glenhyrst Art Gallery of Brant, Branford, ON.
2017 Interstice, Republic Gallery, Vancouver, BC.
2016 In-Between, Durham Art Gallery, Durham, ON.
2014 My Place is Placeless, The Red Head Gallery, Toronto, ON.
2012 10/12/2012, Homer Watson House and Gallery, Kitchener, ON.
2011 Somewhere In Between: Poems, Pallets, Patterns, Buffalo Arts Studio, Buffalo, NY.
2010 Trans-(across, over, beyond), MFA Thesis Exhibition, Art Lab, University of Western Ontario, London, ON. (catalouge)
2009 The Seeker & the Search, curated by Suzanne Luke, Robert Langen Art Gallery, Wilfrid Laurier University, Waterloo, ON.
2008 The Seeker & the Search, Redhead Gallery, Toronto, ON.
2008 Mapping of a Quest, Rotunda Gallery, Kitchener, ON.
2007 What is not to be found is my desire, Cambridge Centre for the Arts, Cambridge, ON.
2006 What is not to be found is my desire, Propeller Centre for the Visual Arts, Toronto, ON.
2006 Hear the Secrets Hidden within the Notes, Homer Watson House & Gallery, Kitchener, ON.
2005 Hear the Secrets Hidden within the Notes, Propeller Centre for the Visual Arts, Toronto, ON.
2005 Poetic Compositions, Curated by SAVAC (South Asian Visual Arts Collective), Canadian Heritage Head Office, Toronto, ON.
2004 Poetic Compositions, Propeller Centre for the Visual Arts, Toronto, ON.
2004 Poetic Compositions, Rotunda Gallery, Kitchener, ON.
SELECTED SMALL GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2024 Across Latitudes, Soheila Esfahani, Heidi McKenzie, Zinnia Naqvi, curated by Shannon Anderson, Art Gallery of Mississauga, Mississauga, ON
2023 of many worlds in this world, Soheila Esfahani, Jessica Karuhanga, Sheri Nault, curated by Ashar Mobeen, Artlab Gallery, Western University, London, ON.
2023 Portraits of Home, Soheila Esfahani, Travis Shilling, Jordyn Stewart, Diana Thorneycroft, curated by Alexandra Hartstone, Grimsby Public Art Gallery, Grimsby, ON, Gallery Stratford, Stratford, ON
2022 The Art of Living: On Community, Immigration, and the Migration of Symbols, Jude Abu Zeineh, Soheila Esfahani, Xiaojing Yan, curated by Catherine Bédard, Canadian Cultural Centre, Paris, France. Watch the preview produced by Canadian Cultural Centre Paris here.
2021 Garden Dispatches, collaborative online project by Soheila Esfahani, Tonia Di Risio & Sally Thurlow, Red Head Gallery, Toronto, ON.
2020 Representing the Diaspora: Adaptation. Hybridization. Resistance. Soheila Esfahani, Mariam Magsi & Sumaira Tazeen curated by Iman Bhatti, OCADU Graduate Gallery, Toronto, ON.
2020 Translations, Jamelie Hassan & Soheila Esfahani, curated by Jenelle Pasiechnik, Campbell River Art Gallery, Campbell River, BC.
2018-19 Connections & Contexts: 4 Artists Explore Islamic Influences and Traditions, Soheila Esfahani, Melika Hashemi, Jamelie Hassan, Sumaira Tazeen, THEMUSEUM, Kitchener, ON.
2016 Pattern Migration, Soheila Esfahani, Sanaz Mazinani & Diyan Achjadi, curated by Kendra Ainsworth, Art Gallery of Mississauga, Mississauga, ON.
2015 Traversive Territories, Sarindar Dhaliwal, Soheila Esfahani, Colette Urban, curated by Corinna Ghaznavi, Varley Art Gallery, Markham, ON.
2013 Equal Interference, site-specific installation by Soheila Esfahani & Carlos Tamarit, curated by Suzanne Luke, Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics, Waterloo, ON.
2013 Ornamental Boundaries, Soheila Esfahani & Brendon Tang, curated by Crystal Mowry, Kitchener-Waterloo Art Gallery, Kitchener, ON.
2012 Past Forward | Present TENSE, curated by Michelle Salter, Soheila Esfahani, Fatima Garzan, Farhang Jalili, Hamilton Artist Inc., Hamilton, ON. (catalogue)
SELECTED JURIED & GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2023-24 DRAFTS 4: Body and Space Relations, Akash Inbakumar, Atanas Bozdarov, Clemens Thornquist, Erin Lewis, Helga Halldorsdottir, Karin Landahl & Stefanie Malmgren de Oliveira, Marjan Kooroshnia, Sameer Farooq & Soheila Esfahani, curated by Tazeen Qayyum, Faisal Anwar & Faseeh Saleem, Art Address, Oakville, ON, Textil Museet, Borås, Sweden.
2023 Node, group exhibition by members of Red Head Gallery, plan.d. produzentengalerie, Dusseldorf, Germany.
2023 Embassy Cultural House: Celebrating 40 Years of Cultural History, Satellite Project Space, London, ON.
2023 Ornamental Gestures, Virgil Baruchel, Millie Chen, Ruth Cuthand, Soheila Esfahani, Ed Pien, Tazeen Qayyum & Shaheer Zazai, group exhibition curated by Sandy Saad-Smith, Doris McCarthy Gallery, University of Toronto Scarborough, Toronto, ON.
2021 Go; Rise and Strike: International Women’s Day Exhibition (online), Embassy Cultural House, London, ON.
2021 Facing Time, curated by Jordan Strom, Durrah Alsaif, Simranpreet Anand, Rebecca Bair, Lorna Brown, Diana Burgoyne, Chila Kumari Burman, Audrey Capel-Doray, Lisa Chen, Qian Cheng, Lincoln Clarkes, Share Corsault, Patrick Cruz, Francis Cruz, Eryne Donahue, Tom Douglas, Wayne Eastcott, Soheila Esfahani, Gabor Gasztonyi, Barry Goodman, Jaswant Guzder, Brian Howell, Jim Jardine, Bill Jeffries, Doreen Jensen, Ali Kazimi, Ann Kipling, Laura Wee Láy Láq, George Littlechild, Ken Lum, Al McWilliams, Elizabeth MacKenzie, María Angélica Madero, Chito Maravilla, Sally Michener, my name is scot, David Neel, Al Neil, Mark Neufeld, George Omorean, Leslie Pool, Deborah Putman, Marianna Schmidt, Jack Shadbolt, Drew Shaffer, Hari Sharma, Stephen Shore, Jarnail Singh, Jeannette Sirois, Manuel Axel Strain, Ed Varney, Carrie Walker, Jin-me Yoon, Surrey Art Gallery, Surrey, BC.
2021 Distance Makes the Heart Grow Weak, organized by Ruth Skinner and Dickson Bou , ArtLab Gallery, Western University, London, ON.
2020-22 Cultured Pallets: SAIB, DTK’s Art Walk, organized by Downtown Kitchener BIA & Kitchener-Waterloo Art Gallery, Kitchener, ON.
2020 Resistance & Resilience, Dallas Karonhia’nó:ron Canady Binette, Chun Hua Catherine Dong, Pilar Escobar, Soheila Esfahani, Lux Habrich, Joyce Joumaa, Asia Mason, Kosisochukwu Nnebe, Michaëlle Sergile, Ya-Nan Song, Winnie Wu, Xiaojing Yan, curated by Rhonda Meier, Warren G Flowers Gallery, Dawson College, Montreal, QC.
2020 Open Channels|Passages Communicants,Canada C3 online group exhibition curated by Melissa Rombout, Lizzie Ittinuar, Sarni Pootoogook, Deanna Bailey, Soheila Esfahani, Christine Fitzgerald, Anna Gaby-Trotz, Phil Irish, Benjamin Kikkert, Paula Murray, Dominique Normand, Geoff Phillips, Francine Potvin, Leslie Reid, Rachel Rozanski and Véronique Tifo, Frankfurt Book Fair 2020, Frankfurt, Germany.
2019-2020 Speculative Energy Futures: Prototypes for Possible Worlds, FAB Gallery, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB.
2019-2020 Close to Home, curated by Shannon Anderson, Oakville Trafalgar Memorial Hospital, Oakville, ON.
2019-2020 Open Channels|Passages Communicants, Canada C3 group exhibition curated by Melissa Rombout, Lizzie Ittinuar, Sarni Pootoogook, Deanna Bailey, Soheila Esfahani, Christine Fitzgerald, Anna Gaby-Trotz, Phil Irish, Benjamin Kikkert, Paula Murray, Dominique Normand, Geoff Phillips, Francine Potvin, Leslie Reid, Rachel Rozanski and Véronique Tifo, Âjagemô Gallery at Canada Council for the Arts, Ottawa, ON.
2019-2020 Bonds and Sutures, curated by Zana Kozomora, WalterFedy, Kitchener, ON.
2019 Pentimento, group exhibition by members of the Red Head Gallery, Red Head Gallery, Toronto, ON.
2018-19 The Living River Project: Art, Water and Possible Worlds, Nadine Bariteau, Elizabeth Chitty, Patricia Coates, Soheila Esfahani, Gautam Garoo, Joscelyn Gardner, Patrick Mahon + Dickson Bou with Mona Stonefish (with Windsor Grade 4&5 Students), Colin Miner, Chris Myhr, Troy Ouellette, Lee Rodney with Justin Langlois, Hamilton Perambulatory Unit and IN/TERMINUS Research Group, Quinn Smallboy, and Jennifer Willet, Art Gallery of Windsor, Windsor, ON (catalogue)
2018 Forward Motion, Christina Battle, Steven Beckly, Patrick Cruz, Soheila Esfahani, Melissa General, Julius Poncelet Manapul, Jihee Min, Ed Pien, Veronique Sunatori, Meera Margaret Singh, Tazeen Qayyum, Small Arms Inspection Building, Mississauga, ON.
2018 @redheadgallery, group exhibition by members of the Red Head Gallery, Red Head Gallery, Toronto, ON.
2018 Flow: From the Movement of People to the Circulation of Information, curated by Jordan Strom, Sean Alward, Mary Frances Batut, Edward Burtynsky, Soheila Esfahani, Monique Fouquet, Sara Graham, Antonia Hirsch, Brian Howell, Ian Johnston, Myron Jones, Laura Wee Láy Láq, M. Simon Levin, Vicky Marshall, Val Nelson, Philippe Raphanel, Helma Sawatzky, Hari Sharma, Haris Sheikh, Meera Margaret Singh, Reva Stone, Brendan Tang, Jer Thorp, Paul Wong, Surrey Art Gallery, Surrey, BC.
2017 Downtown/s: Urban Renewal Today for Tomorrow, The 2017 Art Gallery of WindsorTriennial of Contemporary Art, Shane Darwent, Susan Dobson, Chris Edwards, Soheila Esfahani, (F)NOR, Jessica Frelinghuysen, Hamilton Perambulatory Unit, Meaghan Hyckie, In/Terminus Creative Research Collective, Carey Jernigan and Julia Campbell-Such, Andrea Kastner, Vince Allen Kogut, Greg Ludlow, Cyndra MacDowall & Joshua Babcock, Luke Maddaford, Laura Marotta, Tegan Moore, Taien Ng-Chan, Nadja Pelkey and Joey Stewart, Kathryn Ricketts and Terry Sefton, Jessica Thompson, David Trautrimas, Julie Rae Tucker and Margaret Tucker, Art Gallery of Windsor, Windsor, ON.
2017 Red Head Now, group exhibition by members of the Red Head Gallery, Red Head Gallery, Toronto, ON.
2017 where/between, Curated by Pantea Haghighi, Southern Alberta Art Gallery, Lethbridge, AB.
2017 Canada: Day 1, Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21, Halifax, NS.
2017 Art Toronto: Toronto International Art Fair, Republic Gallery, Toronto, ON.
2017 Passage + Obstacle, curated by Ivan Jurakic, in conjunction with Bridges Math Art conference, University of Waterloo Art Gallery, Waterloo, ON.
2017 Connect 2017: Embracing Place, Homer Watson Gallery, Kitchener, ON.
2017 Dar’a: Full Circle, curated by Jamelie Hassan, Tom Benner, Doris Bittar, Peter Dykhuis, Soheila Esfahani, Fatima Garzan, Janice Gurney, Stacey Ho (in collaboration with Julia Aoki), Robert Houle, Miriam Jordan-Haladyn, Meryl McMaster, Nadia Myre, Troy Ouellette, Anna Wieselgren, Jennifer Willet, Artcite Inc., Windsor, ON.
2015|16|17 Material Girls, curated by Blair Fornwald, Jennifer Matotek & Wendy Peart, Morehshin Allahyari, Jaime Angelopoulos, Christi Belcourt, Katherine Boyer, Karin Bubaš, Andrea Carlson, Ying-Yueh Chuang, Alex Cu Unjieng, Raphaëlle de Groot, Abigail DeVille, Soheila Esfahani, Ran Hwang, Sarah Anne Johnson, Felice Koenig, Deirdre Logue, Rachel Ludlow, Jodie Mack, Amy Malbeuf, Sanaz Mazinani, Meryl McMaster, Tricia Middleton, Allyson Mitchell, Dominique Rey, Winnie Truong, Marie Watt, Dunlop Art Gallery, Regina, SK, Doris McCarthy Gallery, Scarborough, ON, Contemporary Calgary, Calgary, AB, College Art Galleries, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, Rodman Hall Art Centre, St. Catharines, ON (catalogue)
2016 where/between, curated by Pantea Haghighi, Equinox Gallery, Vancouver, BC
2016 Defining Identity, THEMUSEUM, Kitchener, ON.
2016 Connect 2016: Go with the Flow, Cambridge Centre for the Arts, Cambridge, ON.
2016 Inside|Outside, group exhibition by members of the Red Head Gallery, Cambridge Centre for the Arts, Cambridge, ON, Homer Watson Gallery, Kitchener, ON.
2015 The Red Head Gallery at 25, Red Head Gallery, Toronto, ON. (catalouge)
2015 Human Nature, curated by Corinna Ghaznavi, Art Gallery of University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK.
2015 Connect 2015, curated by Suzanne Luke, WalterFedy, Kitchener, ON.
2015 Human Nature, curated by Corinna Ghaznavi, Carleton University Art Gallery, Ottawa, ON.
2014 The Source: Reconsidering Water Through Contemporary Art, curated by Stuart Reid, Nadine Bariteau, Raymond Boisjoly, Elizabeth Chitty, Soheila Esfahani, Gautam Garoo, Patrick Mahon, Colin Miner, Lucy + Jorge Orta, Gu Xiong, Rodman Hall Art Centre (Brock University), St. Catharines, ON. (catalouge)
2014 Cultured Pallets:SLF, Summer Lights Festival, Kitchener, ON.
2013 Direct From the Studios, Homer Watson House & Gallery, Kitchener, ON.
2013 The Third Space, curated by Sanaz Mazinani, Soheila Esfahani, Negar Farajiani, Gita Hashemi, Elnaz Maassoumian, Naz Rahbar, Sona Safaei-Sooreh, York Quay Gallery, Harbourfront Centre, Toronto, ON.
2011 Convergence, curated by Suzanne Luke, The Communitech Hub, Kitchener, ON. (catalogue)
2011 Finding Correspondences, curated by Jordan Strom, Digital Natives, Soheila Esfahani, Mark Neufeld, Emilio Rojas, Tony Romano, Ming Wong, Surrey Art Gallery, Surrey, BC.
2011 Evolution|Revolution, Buffalo Arts Studio, Buffalo, NY. (catalogue)
2011 Cafka. 11. Survive. Resist. (Contemporary Art Forum Kitchener & Area), Kitchener, ON.
2011 50 Years of Art: Looking Back at the Future, curated by Jennifer Rudder, First Canadian Place Gallery, Toronto, ON
2011 Organic Poetry, two person exhibition, The Communitech Hub, Kitchener & The Accelerator Centre, Waterloo, ON.
2010 Art at Work: Corporate Collecting Practices Today, Part 2, curated by Geraldine Davis, Art Gallery of Mississauga, Mississauga, ON. (catalogue)
2009 DIASPORArt, Group exhibition of works from the collection of the Canada Council Art Bank, Rideau Hall, Ottawa, ON.
2009 Production Still, Art Lab, University of Western Ontario, London, ON.
2008 Material Girl, Harbinger Gallery, Waterloo, ON.
2007 Crossing Borders, Kenan Center, Rockport, NY.
2007 Metaphor, Meditation and the Age of Anger, Gallery 96, Stratford, ON.
2006 Studio Alert: Illuminating the Source, Kitchener-Waterloo Art Gallery, Kitchener, ON.
2006 Rebirth, Harbourfront Centre, Toronto, ON.
2005 Poem as Image, The Studio, Armonk, NY.
2005 Showcase 05, Cambridge Galleries, Cambridge, ON.
2004 RBC Investments’ Cross-country Canadian Painting Competition Tour: Edmonton Art Gallery, Edmonton, AB; Brunswick Museum, Saint John, NB; McMaster Museum of Art, Hamilton, ON; Museum of Contemporary Canadian Art, Toronto, ON. (catalogue)
2004 Worship: Ontario Society of artists’ 130th Open Juried Exhibition, J. B. Aird Gallery, Toronto, ON.
2003 11 Pieces: Juried exhibition, Propeller Centre for the Visual Arts, Toronto, ON.
2003 Cambridge Galleries Open Juried Exhibition, Cambridge Galleries, Cambridge, ON.
AWARDS & GRANTS
2020 Ontario Arts Council Production Grant: Mid career Artist
2018 Women Who Inspire Awards, Coalition of Muslim Women, Kitchener, ON
2017 Canada Council for the Arts: Production Grant
2017 Ontario Arts Council Production Grant: Mid career Artist
2016 Waterloo Region Arts Awards (Visual Arts category), Waterloo, ON
2016|12|08|06|04 Ontario Arts Council Exhibition Assistance Grant
2015 Jameel Prize nominee, Victoria & Albert Museum, London, UK
2015 Ontario Arts Council Production Grant: Mid career Artist
2011-14 Research/Creation Grant in Fine Arts, Social Sciences & Humanities Research Council of Canada, co-applicant in multi-disciplinary project with Patrick Mahon (Western University, principal applicant) & Gu Xiong (University of Biritish Columbia)
2013 Ontario Arts Council Production Grant: Mid career Artist
2012 Region of Waterloo Arts Fund Production Grant, Waterloo, ON.
2011|08|05 Ontario Arts Council Production Grant: Emerging Artist
2010 University of Western Ontario Graduate Thesis Research Award
2010|09|08 University of Western Ontario Graduate Research Scholarship
2008 University of Western Ontario Graduate travel Grant
2004 Central Canada Semi-finalist: RBS Investments’ Canadian Painting Competition, Toronto, ON.
2003 Canadian Clay and Glass Gallery Volunteer Award, Waterloo, ON.
2003 Liz Edwards Memorial Award, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON.
SELECTED REVIEWS
2024 Stacey, Megan. “Professor and artist Soheila Esfahani designs coin for Royal Canadian Mint: Silver and gold coins celebrate culture and history of Iranian Canadians.” Western News, February 22.
2023 Erdogan-O’Connor, S., Ferrucci, G., MacDiarmid, R., Piccolo, J., Priewe, S., & Smith, S.E.K. 2023. “Between There and Here”: Surveying the Global Work of Diaspora, Migration, and Mobility- Engaged Museums. Western University
2023 Alvarenga, Carlos. “Reflections on the In Between.” Critic at Large, July 18.
2023 Stacey, Megan. “Art show addresses issues of race, gender, sexuality, and diaspora.” Western News, May 19.
2023 “Waterloo artist to explore exhibition with public at Preston Gallery in Cambridge.” Cambridge Times, January 18.
2022 Lion,Valérie. “L’immigration, tout un art au Canada.” Attache ta tuque, May 16.
2022 Chaizemartin, Julie. “Des vies entre deux mondes.” Transfuge Magazine, May 23.
2022 Celeux-Lanval, Maïlys. “L’expérience de l’immigration questionnée par trois artistes femmes.” BeauxArts, May 25.
2022 Ambler, Annabelle. “ “L’art de Vivre”, l’art de la migration des symboles: une poétique de l’exil au Centre Culturel Canadien.” Toute La Culture, May 30.
2022 Pasiechnik, Jenelle M. “An Account of Practice for the exhibition Translations, featuring the artwork of Jamelie Hassan and Soheila Esfahani (Campbell River Art Gallery, July 9 to September 2, 2020).” ARTiculate: Journal of Contemporary Art History, V4, 2022
2020 Pasiechnik, Jenelle M. “Embodied Engagements: The Artwork of Jamelie Hassan & Soheila Esfahani in Translations.“ Rungh Magazine, V7, NO.4
2019 Rombout, Melissa & Tara Maacarenhas. “From Ship to Shore.” Above & Beyond: Canada’s Arctic Journal, October 31.
2019 Aritcheta, Allyson. “[Review] Pattern (dis)Placement by Soheila Esfahani.” Looseleaf (Project 40 Collective), July 16.
2019 Kurd, Nadia. “Profiles on Practice: Soheila K. Esfahani.” Femme Art Review, June 2019.
2018 Bronstein, Noa. “Cultured Pallets: Translating the Global.” Rungh Magazine, V6, NO.1
2018 Beheiry, Valerie. “Portable Culture: Soheila Esfahani.” Visual Arts News, September 6.
2018 Desveaux, Heather. “Considering ‘In-between’ Culture at Ross Creek Centre for the Arts.” The Chronicle Herald, April 23.
2017 Cappuccitti, Jessica. “The Art of Urban Renewal in Windsor-Detroit.“ Canadian Art, November 28.
2017 Gazzola, Bart. “Owning Space: Material Girls.” The Sound STC.
2017 Kim, Ju Hyun. “Power and Globalization.” Imprint, November 15.
2017 “Interstice by Soheila Esfahani.” The Islamic Arts Magazine, October 15.
2017 Ip, Malgosia. “Patterns in Art and Mathematics.” Fields Notes, Vol 17:2, p.19.
2017 McKay, Staphanie. “Material Girls: All-Female Art Show Avoids Austere Gallery Tradition.” Saskatoon StarPhoenix, February 2.
2017 “Women Get Spotlight in Art Exhibit at U of S.” CBC news, February 5.
2016 “In-Between by Soheila Esfahani.” The Islamic Arts Magazine, October 1.
2016 Mason, Hailey. “Inspiration from Antiquity.” The Medium, September 12.
2016 Griffin, Kevin. “Art Seen: Works by Artists of Iranian Heritage Explore What It Means to be Caught Between.” Vancouver Sun, July 8.
2016 Dick, Terence. “Material Girls and Feminism.” Akimbo TV, season 1, episode 10.
2016 Samuel, Daniel. “Living in a Material World.” The Varsity, February 7.
2015 Griffin, Kevin. “Atoms and Artists: The Spookiness of Being in Two Places at Once.” Vancouver Sun, December 31.
2015 Red Head Gallery 25th anniversary exhibition, Artoronto.ca, December 2015.
2015 “The Couplets from Reed to Paper.” Skylife magazine, Turkish Airlines, October 2015.
2015 Fournier, Lauren. “Material Girls” Takes Up Space at the Dunlop.” Canadian Art, April 2.
2015 Fraser, D. “Move Over, Madonna.” The Leader-Post, January 31.
2015 Beatty, Gregory. “The Women Show.” Prairie Dog Magazine, February 19.
2014 Neudorf, Kim. “The Source at Rodman Hall in St. Catharines.” Akimblog, September 23.
2014 Cluett, Emily. “Tracking Culture.” Art & Science Journal.
2013 Snyder, Leah. “Written on the Body/ Politics of Poetry: Iranian Artists & the Power of the Script.“ Mixed Bag Mag, July 17, 2013
2013 Manao, Anna. “The Third Space.” Frank, July 25, 2013
2013 Reid, Robert. “Two Artists Cross Ornamental Cultural Boundaries.” The Record, January 15, 2013, C1
2013Neudorf, Kim. “Brandon Tang & Soheila Esfahani at Kitchener Waterloo Art Gallery.” Akimblog, February 5, 2013.
2012 Behiery, Valerie. “Working Across Cultures: An Interview with Soheila Esfahani.” The Islamic Arts Magazine, July 6, 2012.
2012 Reid, Robert. “Exploring Multiculturalism.” The Record, March 29, 2012, B6.
2011 Dabkowski, Colin. “Cultural Infusion.” The Buffalo News, January 14.
2011 Ross, Veronica. “Cultural Connections.” Grand Magazine (Jan., Feb. 2011): 112-117.
2011 Reid, Robert. “Here’s Art You Just Can’t Miss.” The Record, September 17, 2011, D1-2.
2011 Cafka TV. Cafka 11. Survive. Resist. Interview, Sept. 2011.
2011 Reid, Robert. “Inspiration in the Workplace.” The Record, September 12, 2011, D1.
2011 Zerehi, Sima Sahar. “Reading Tehranto in Buffalo.” Shahrvand Publications, Toronto, ON, January 20.
2010 Matheiu, Emily. “Corporate Art: Not Just Pretty Pictures.” The Toronto Star, Sept. 7.
2010 Adzic, Jelena. Outsider Art. CBC: The National, Interview, January 31.
2009 Fraser, J Lynn. “The Tactile Abstractions of Soheila Esfahani.” Letter Arts Review 23 (2009): 29-41.
2008 Reid, Robert. “Let Life Surround You.” The Record, February 16, 2008, C1.
2007 Dale, Alison. “Works by Iranian-Canadians at Gallery 96.” The Beacon Herald, May 16, 2007, p.3.
2006 Reid, Robert. “Diversity of Show Illuminates.” The Record, October 18, 2006, B4.
2005 Genocchio, Benjamin. “Art Review: Some Rich Pickings for the Art Lover.” The New York Times, November 2.
2005 Ariaratnam, Daniel. Rogers Cable News: Today’s Waterloo Region, Kitchener, ON, Interview, September 23.
2005 Reid, Robert. “Artist Profile: Blending East & West.” The Record, May 14, 2005, C1.
2004 “Geographical Expressions.” Visual magazine 1 (2004), Art Review.
2004 Nestruck, J. Kelly and Julia Dault. “Brush Strokes of What’s to Come.” National Post, November 18, 2004, AL 6-7, picture.
2004 Gordon, Leslie. CKCO TV News, Kitchener, ON, Interview, July 16.
2003 Howe, Linda. “Stage & Studio.” University of Waterloo Gazette, April 2.
PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES|ARTIST TALKS
2023 Curatorial talk with Mélika Hashemi in conjuction with In Search of a Loss of Self, Kitchener-Waterloo Art Gallery, Kitchener, ON.
2023 Panel discussion in conjunction with Node, Red Head Gallery exhibition exchange with plan.d. produzentengalerie collective, Goethe Institute, Toronto, ON.
2023 Panel discussion in conjunction with Cultured Pallets: Aga Khan Museum, Global Conversations: Cultured Pallets, Aga Khan Museum, Toronto, ON.
2023 Artist talk in conjunction with Drafts 4, Atanas Bozdarov & Soheila Esfahani, Art Gallery of Mississauga, Mississauga, ON.
2022 Panel discussion in conjunction with The Art of Living: On Community, Immigration, and the Migration of Symbols, Jude Abu Zeineh, Soheila Esfahani, Xiaojing Yan, curated by Catherine Bédard, Canadian Cultural Centre, Paris, France.
2021 Soheila Esfahani: Third Space, Profiles on Practice Podcast by Nadia Kurd, Femme Art Review.
2020 Panel discussion in conjunction with Resistance & Resilience, Warren G Flowers Gallery, Dawson College, Montreal, QC.
2020 Artist Talk in conjunction with Translations, Jamelie Hassan & Soheila Esfahani, Campbell River Art Gallery, Campbell River, BC.
2019 Artist Talk in conjunction with Pattern (dis)Placement exhibition, Redeemer University College Gallery, Ancaster, ON.
2018 panel member, Rethinking Water Through Contemporary Art, Museum London, London, ON.
2018 Artist Talk in conjunction with Interstice exhibition at Ross Creek Centre for the Arts, Canning Library, Canning, NS.
2017 Artist Talk, Art in the Public Sphere, The Returners: Seven Conversations, Department of Visual Arts, Western University, London, ON.
2017 Artist Talk, University of Waterloo Fine Arts Department, Waterloo, ON.
2017 Presenter & panel member, Universities Art Association of Canada Conference, The Banff Centre for the Arts, Banff, AB.
2017 Artist talk, University of Lethbridge ART NOW Visiting Artist Lecture series, in conjunction with where/between exhibition at Southern Alberta Art Gallery, Lethbridge, AB
2017 Artist talk, Canada: Day 1, Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21, Halifax, NS
2016 Lecturer, Pattern Finding: Popular Expression of Transcendent Ideas, Bridges Lecture series, St. Jerome’s University, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON.
2016 Artist talk, KW Society of Artists, Kitchener, ON.
2016 Juror, Max Awards, Toronto, ON.
2015 Artist Talk, Conrad Grebel University College, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON.
2015 Presenter & panel member, The Varley Art Gallery, Markham, ON.
2015 Presenter & panel member, Multiple Li(v)es of Art/ists & … Conference, OCAD University, Toronto, ON.
2015 Artist talk, Knowledge Integration Seminar Series, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON.
2014 Artist talk, Third Age Learning lecture series, Guelph, ON.
2014 Artist talk, The Source: Reconsidering Water Through Contemporary Art, Rodman Hall Art Centre (Brock University), St. Catharine’s, ON.
2014 Juror, Artist in Education Grant, Ontario Arts Council, Toronto, ON.
2014 Panel member, The Source: Reconsidering Water Through Contemporary Art, Rodman Hall Art Centre (Brock University), St. Catharines, ON.
2013 Artist talk, Third Age Learning lecture series: Canada Land of Immigrants, Waterloo, ON.
2013 Panel member, Muslim Women: Now & Then, Kitchener City Hall, Kitchener, ON.
2013 Artist talk, Curator’s Circle, Kitchener Waterloo Art Gallery, Kitchener, ON.
2013 Artist talk, Off Topic, Kitchener Waterloo Art Gallery, Kitchener, ON.
2012 Panel member, “Past Forward | Present Tense” Exhibition Panel Discussion, Hamilton Artist Inc., Hamilton, ON.
2012 Juror, Box 12 Art Exhibition, Cambridge, ON.
2011 Artist talk/panelist, “Cultural Translation,” Shift Symposium: Dialogues of Migration in Contemporary Art, MacKenzie Art Gallery, Regina, SK.
2011 Presenter/exhibitor, “Here, There, and Beyond” conference, Studies in Islam, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON.
2011 Artist talk, Women’s Studies, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON.
2011 Artist talk, Conrad Grebel University College, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON.
2009 Artist talk, Wilfrid Laurier University, Waterloo, ON.
2007 Panel member, “Images of Faith,” Kitchener Public Library, Kitchener, ON.
2006 Panel member, “Sources & Inspirations,” Kitchener-Waterloo Art Gallery, Kitchener.
2005 Artist talk, Canadian Heritage Head Office, Toronto, ON.
RESIDENCIES
2023 Hafnarborg Artist Residency, The Hafnarfjörður Centre of Culture and Fine Art, Hafnarfjörður, Iceland
2022 Artist in residency, FluxKit for Energy Transition as part of Speculative Energy Futures project, SQUARE- University of St. Gallen, St. Gallen, Switzerland.
2018 Ross Creek Centre for the Arts, Canning, NS.
2017 Canada C3 expedition, Leg 4 (Charlottetown-St. John’s)
2015 Frans Masereel Centrum, Kasterlee, Belgium
2013 Immersion Emergencies and Possible Worlds: Engaging Water as Culture and Resource through Contemporary Art, SSHRC, The Banff Centre, Banff, AB.
2013 Kitchener-Waterloo Art Gallery’s In|sight residency, St. Mary’s Catholic Secondary School & Kitchener Waterloo Art Gallery, Kitchener, ON.
2012 Immersion Emergencies and Possible Worlds: Engaging Water as Culture and Resource through Contemporary Art, SSHRC, Niagara Fall, ON.
2003-5 Homer Watson House and Gallery, Kitchener, ON.
COLLECTIONS
Coin design for Celebrating Canada’s Diversity Collection, Royal Canadian Mint, Ottawa, ON.
McIntosh Gallery, Western University, London, ON.
Art Bank, Canada Council for the Arts, Ottawa, ON.
Surrey Art Gallery, Surrey, BC.
Global Affairs Canada, Ottawa, ON.
Glenhyrst Art Gallery of Brant, Branford, ON.
The Accelerator Centre, Waterloo, ON.
Brock Solutions, Kitchener, ON.
Private Collections: Canada, USA, Germany, Iran, Egypt.
EXHIBITION PUBLICATIONS
2024 Saleem, Faseeh & Matilda Forssblad, DRAFTS 4: Body and Space Relations, Exhibition Catalogue, Body & Space Research Lab, Swedish School of Textiles, University of Borås and Art Address Canada.
2023 Mobeen, Ashar, of many worlds in this world, Soheila Esfahani, Jessica Karuhanga, Sheri Nault, Exhibition Catalogue, Artlab Gallery, Western University, London, ON.
2022 Boileau, Karly. Being Here, There, and In-between, Exhibition brochure, Cambridge Art Galleries (Idea|Exchange), Cambridge, ON.
2020 Pasiechnik, Jenelle M. Embodied Engagements: The Artwork of Jamelie Hassan & Soheila Esfahani in Translations, Exhibition catalogue, Campbell River Art Gallery, Campbell River, BC.
2019 The Living River Project: Art, water and Possible Worlds exhibition catalogue, Art Gallery of Windsor, Windsor, ON.
2017 The Source: Rethinking Water Through Contemporary Art exhibition catalogue, Rodman Hall Art Centre, Brock University, St. Catharines, ON.
2017 Embracing Place exhibition catalogue, Homer Watson House & Gallery, Kitchener, ON.
2015 The Red Head Gallery at 25 exhibition catalogue, The Red Head Gallery, Toronto, ON.
2015 Matotek, Jennifer ed. Material Girls. London, UK: Black Dog Publishing Ltd, 2015.
2012 Linsley, Robert. “Iran in the Mirror.” Past Forward \ Present TENSE exhibition catalogue. Hamilton: Hamilton Artist Inc., 2012.
2011 Luke, Suzanne. Convergence Exhibition Catalogue, The Communitech Hub, Kitchener, ON.
2011 Evolution|Revolution Exhibition Catalogue, Buffalo Arts Studio, Buffalo, NY.
2011 Davis, Geraldine. Art At Work: Corporate Collecting Practices Today. Mississauga: Art Gallery of Mississauga, 2011.
2010 Orpana, Jennifer. “Somewhere In Between: Trans- (across, over, beyond).” Intersections exhibition catalogue.
2008 RBC Canadian Painting Competition 10 years, exhibition catalogue.
2004 RBC Canadian Painting Competition, exhibition catalogue.
2003 Reid, Robert. “From Rathke’s Pouch.” University of Waterloo Graduating Class Exhibition Catalogue.
CURATORIAL PROJECTS
2024 Drafts 5: Diasporic Bodies, curated by Soheila Esfahani & Faseeh Saleem, Cohen Commons Gallery, John Labatt Visual Arts Centre, Western University, London, ON.
2023 In Search of a Loss of Self, curated by Soheila Esfahani & Mélika Hashemi, Kitchener-Waterloo Art Gallery, Kitchener, ON.
WRITING|OTHER CONTRIBUTIONS BY THE ARTIST
2023 contributor, Nine Commentaries on Artists to Watch, Art Canada Institute, July 14.
2022 Esfahani, Soheila, Contemporary Muslim Artists Continue to Adapt Islamic Patterns to Challenge Ideas about fixed Culture, The Conversation, April 2.
2019 Esfahani, Soheila, Illumination to Installation Art, catalogue essay for Tapestry of Spirit: The Torah Stitch by Stitch Project, Textile Museum of Canada, Toronto, ON.
2014 Esfahani, Soheila, “Photo Essay.” Lalit Kala Contemporary. New Delhi: Lalit Kala Akademi, 2014.
2014 Nokyoung Xayasane, Soheila Esfahani. Encountering Difference. Kitchener: Stonegarden Studios.
EDUCATION
2010 Master of Fine Arts, University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario.
Dissertation: Trans-(across, over, beyond); Investigations of Cultural Translation in Visual Arts.
2003 Honours Bachelor of Arts, Fine Arts, Studio Specialization, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario.
TEACHING EXPERIENCE
2020- Assistant Professor, Western University, London, ON.
2012-2020 Lecturer, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON.
2012-2020 Education Officer, Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto, ON.
2003-2019 Art instructor, Homer Watson House and Gallery, Kitchener, ON.
2012-13 Lecturer, University of Western Ontario, London, ON. (Foundation Studio)
2009-10 Co-Instructor, University of Western Ontario, London, ON. (Foundation Studio)
2008-09 Teaching Assistant, University of Western Ontario, London, ON.
2002-2008 Educator, Canadian Clay and Glass Gallery, Waterloo, ON.
AFFILIATIONS
• The Red Head Gallery, Toronto, ON. 2007-2009, 2012-ongoing.
• SAVAC: South Asian Visual Arts Collective, Toronto, ON.
• Propeller Center for the Visual Arts, Toronto, ON. 2003-2007.
• City of Kitchener’s Public Art Working Group, Kitchener, ON. 2006-2008.
