Salman Khoshroo’s Art Therapy: Artistic Portraits Woven From Wool

Khoshroo mostly works with the art form of painting, yet for this series of works he has applied his painterly knowledge and skills to new techniques and materials. “In my paintings I am inclined to make sweeping gestures and I find the wool to be a beautifully flowing material,” he explains. “So I laid the wool like floating brush strokes, and these are the results.” Weaving inanimate fibers into faces has brought about a source of comfort for the artist during this tough and turbulent time. “These portraits are delicate and vulnerable and resonate with my own precarious situation. We live in fragile times, and I feel the need to find new materials and the mindset to reinvent my practice,” he says. Blending together elements of abstraction and figuration, Khoshroo’s works juxtapose the bright colors and soft texture of the wool with the depiction of male figures. Through these works, he evokes the delicacy and vulnerability of humans, sculpting wool rovings into noses, cheek bones, lips, and flowing hair. “Making male portraits with this habitually perceived feminine material, is part of a personal journey in re-interpreting the masculine condition,” he explains.