Samira Taheri (b. 1980, Tehran, Iran) has a BFA in Painting from the University of Science and Culture, Tehran. She has held two solo shows and her work has been included in one group show. Taheri lives and works in Tehran.

“New York”

This series of paintings is a trip to a city that is very lovable and attractive and yet out of reach: New York. Given the dire circumstances of our time, how can I possibly travel to this city? In the corner of my room, I managed to find a solution: making an imaginary journey in the virtual world through Google Earth. On the sidewalks, I stroll between different people of different races and wander the streets with high towers. In my mind, however, all I think is how these images are different: the image I see as a viewer through the lens of Google Earth and the image I would have seen if I were there. Have I heard that somewhere before? “Images claim to be versions of the truth. Yet, the truth is singular, and its versions are mistruth.” If what I see on a mobile screen and through the lens of Google Earth camera is not true and just a copy of truth, then I will mess with it to make my own version. A copy of a copy.