Taraneh Hemami

Taraneh Hemami is an Assistant Professor in the Critical Ethnic Studies Program at the California College of the Arts (CCA), where she integrates artistic practice, curation, and pedagogy to explore themes of displacement, cultural memory, and political representation. Her interdisciplinary work spans installation, object-making, media, and participatory projects, with a focus on the Iranian diaspora.

• BFA, University of Oregon
• MFA in Painting, California College of Arts and Crafts (1991)

Hemami’s research and artistic practice center on critical ethnic studies, cultural memory, and diasporic identity. She investigates how images are crafted for political power and how marginalized communities preserve and represent their histories. Her work often engages archival materials, particularly from the Iranian Students Association of Northern California, to foster intergenerational dialogue about revolution, survival, and resistance.

Her recent artistic projects reflect a deep engagement with language, identity, and public space. Works like Collective Language (2025) and Falling into Language (2024) explore multilingualism and belonging, while Theory of Survival: Fabrications (2014) and Part and Parcel (2019) examine diasporic memory through curated installations. Her art frequently uses symbolic materials—mirrors, beads, textiles—to comment on surveillance, erasure, and cultural preservation.

Hemami has received numerous awards and fellowships, including:

• San Francisco Arts Commission Individual Artist Award (2014)
• Zellerbach Family Foundation Community Arts Award (2019)
• Creative Capital Grant
• Fleishhacker Foundation Fellowship
• Kala Art Institute Fellowship

She has been actively involved in advising, curatorial projects, and community-based grants. Her Theory of Survival initiative functions as both an artistic and educational platform, supporting collaborative research, residencies, and public programming. She has received funding from the Creative Work Fund, California Council for the Humanities, and Center for Cultural Innovation to support these interdisciplinary efforts.

Hemami’s work is exhibited widely, including at Southern Exposure, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, and the Victoria and Albert Museum. Her public art commissions, such as Collective Language for NYC Public Schools, demonstrate her commitment to art in educational and civic spaces.