Amir Nikravan

Amir Nikravan is an Adjunct Associate Professor in the Fine Art department at ArtCenter College of Design, where he has been teaching since 2017. He specializes in sculpture with a focus on digital and technological explorations, and leads the Senior Projects Thesis courses, guiding students through their final academic exhibitions. He is also actively involved in institutional governance, serving on the Undergraduate Fine Art Curriculum Committee, the Schoolwide Shops Committee, and the WASC Accreditation Committee.

His research and artistic practice centers on the intersection of art, architecture, and design, critically examining modernity’s colonial legacies and the role of cultural appropriation in diasporic communities. Nikravan's work often employs faux finishes and low-cost materials to mimic high-production-value sculptures, questioning authenticity, access, and power structures in the art world. His work explores themes of passing, illusion, and surface versus depth, drawing from 1990s suburban aesthetics and contemporary identity politics.

The themes in his recent artworks—such as Rational Design (2017), Neutral Rainbow (2019), and World of Interiors (2018)—reflect a sustained inquiry into materiality, perception, and the economics of artistic legitimacy. His pieces often function as critical parodies of modernist sculpture, using mimicry to expose systemic exclusions in art institutions. The recurring use of painted veneers, shallow depth, and faux industrial finishes underscores a commentary on class, aspiration, and the performative nature of artistic success.

His recognition includes:

• California Community Foundation Fellowship (2017)

Nikravan has exhibited widely across the U.S., U.K., Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. His work has been featured in Art in America, Los Angeles Times, and The Brooklyn Rail. As an advisor, while no formal students are listed, he plays a pivotal role in mentoring thesis students through the capstone exhibition process. He does not appear to lead a formal lab or research team, but his studio practice is deeply integrated with his pedagogy and institutional engagement.