“As the lagoon gradually disappeared, I slowly began to identify with it. I felt sad for it.”
This is how Iranian painter Shirin Boriaidoost described the beginning of her series Gradual Death of the Swamp in an interview conducted in connection with her solo exhibition at Khat-e Sefid Gallery.
Raised in Ghazian, where her family home is located near Anzali Lagoon, Boriaidoost has lived alongside the lagoon since childhood. She recalls passing by it every day on her way to school before returning years later with her canvas and paints. What began as simply painting beside the lagoon gradually developed into an ongoing body of work, which she has continued since 2023.
Created primarily with acrylic and oil on canvas, wood, photographic paper, and cardboard, the series is rooted in an expressionist approach. While some works move toward abstraction, others remain closer to reality. The exhibition featured 35 paintings, ranging in size from 14 × 14 cm to 100 × 120 cm, accompanied by a short film presented as part of the exhibition.
Reflecting on the series, Boriaidoost says she still does not know whether she has truly succeeded in conveying the lagoon’s gradual disappearance through her paintings. She concludes the conversation with a simple hope:
“I hope we can all help restore Anzali Lagoon.”
