'Appreciation for Life'

The Art Spirit Gallery will host its next session of Art Talks, “An Appreciation For Life” featuring a talk by Persian painter Meidi Karampour, online via Zoom from 6 to 7 p.m. Saturday.

Karampour recently relocated to Palouse, Wash., with a master's degree in fine art and many awards.

“I had the privilege of studying under the supervision of Nelson Shanks at Studio Incamminati," Karampour said in a news release. "My paintings contain a variety of subjects from figurative to non-figurative. I have been working as a painter for several years; during which I have worked with interior design firms and had solo and group shows in both Iran and the U.S.”

Karampour has sold to many private collections internationally.

“We were immediately drawn to the work as a contemporary take on Norman Rockwell’s storytelling," Art Spirit owner Blair Williams said in the news release.

"No longer do we get dressed in our ‘Sunday best’ and gather around the dinner table," she said. "Today we are more often found on our couch, searching the web. Meidi’s works draw us in with a story … a story that we want to discover … we want to add to … we want to know how it ends." 

Karampour said he feels appreciation for life and recognizing the beauty of being present in the moment.

"I paint moments that highlight mundane slices of life that are common throughout many current cultures,” he said. 

By pushing the pigment abilities and utilizing painting principles, he composes scenes that focus on the beauty of moments' essence to exhibit their significancy regardless of the happenings.

"Familiar cultural and natural elements and a degree of ambiguity in the finished work reveal just enough information to make the picture feel familiar to the viewer no matter their cultural background or location," Karampour said. "Without recognizable specificity in area like face features that can turn the image into a personal experience, the viewer subconsciously participates and resonates with the scenes I choose to paint.”

The Art Spirit Gallery invites guests to join the Artist Talk via Zoom at: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/83401038001?pwd=bomimSUADhhde1H6sYm0K7vfsVbofC.1