Lida Sherafatmand, a multitalented artist who has lived in Malta for much of her life, creates paintings and jewellery as miniature sculptures and her poetry has also been well received around the world.
She started out on her artistic path by creating paintings with messages. Her work has been connected to grassroots and international organisations working in the fields of peace and human rights and has travelled to 15 countries and been published by major bodies such as Amnesty International, the UN, UNESCO and the Vatican.
It was in Malta that, in 2004, Lida wrote her Humanitarian Art Manifesto, which was designed to create a synergy among artists who share the same commitment in their artistic creations. This manifesto has been translated into seven languages and is signed by artists from 22 countries.
In 2006, Lida established a base in Paris, where she now lives. It was here that the style of her painting evolved and was displayed in several galleries, salons and auction houses. Impressed by the creative energy of Paris, she branched out from painting and began designing for different jewellery and silverware companies in France. Her design work has been presented at important international salons in Paris and made it to the winning table of France’s Championships of the Art of Table Wear.
In 2008, Lida launched her own jewellery line that is influenced by her painting and poetry.
Her latest collection, launched in 2011, is inspired by the female form. She considers it to be part of her battle for universal freedom, respect for the dignity and beauty of life and freedom of expression in art. Lida is committed to giving prominence to a softness that she feels is suppressed in a world dominated by the power of warfare.
She was born in Iran (the former Persia) in 1977, and her childhood was influenced by the newly-formed regime. The oppressive conditions imposed by the government and the harshness of war had a strong impact on her, prompting a passion for encouraging people to stop fighting and learn to live in a harmony where people enjoy the warmth of friendship.
Lida’s interest in art started at the tender age of three. In 1991, when she was 14, she moved to Malta with her family and by the age of 19 she was studying at the School of Art under the tutorship of a well-known Maltese painter Anthony Calleja. She also has degrees in International Relations and she has written research papers on international relations.
In September she will be exhibiting at the Roerich Museum in St Petersburg. The museum is named after Nicholas Roerich, a 20th-century Russian painter who cared about the international situation between countries and wrote philosophical papers as well as producing paintings.
This venue was chosen because the director of the museum that bears Roerich’s name could see the similarity between Lida’s path and that of Nicholas Roerich, who has been one of her idols for many years.
Lida has also been nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize for the book ABC of Harmony, to which 75 authors from around the world contributed – almost all of them established scholars and professors and much older than Lida. The Nobel Committee has recognised this book as “as an unprecedented tool of world peace”.
One of Lida’s long poems is included in this book, which speaks of human nature, its infinite aspects and the duality of its functions. Lida has illustrated this poem through her new series of paintings, an exhibition of which will be touring the world, appearing in several important places – starting at the Roerich Museum in September.
During the travelling exhibition, Lida will be giving a public lecture, which is based on a research paper that she presented as her PhD thesis (and which has already been accepted for PhD research).
Links
www.lidsher.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/pages/Lida-Sherafatmand/377758578924904
Poems: www.lidsher.com/poems
Art Manifesto: www.lidasherafatmand.bravehost.com/