Supporting Artist - Maryam Sedadi

Maryam Sedadi was born and raised in Iran. In 1978, she visited the United States for the first time during a summer trip with her family to celebrate her high school graduation. The family had planned a two-month trip to celebrate her acceptance into three prominent universities in Iran as she took steps to become a physician.

While enjoying their trip to California, the Islamic revolution reached peak tension. In an effort to protect the family’s safety, her parents decided to stay in the United States. Leaving her childhood memories and future dreams behind, she found solace in writing short poems or prose and creating pen and ink drawings, though a busy life in new unfamiliar territory made it hard to be creative constantly.

After graduating with a B.A. in Business Management from California State University, Long Beach, Maryam started her career in banking as a young single mother while caring for her family and raising her son. Fortunately, her creative spirit never stopped thriving; she became a self-taught collage artist. She founded Kimya Collection in 2014 – creating analog collages, as well as hand-cut and crafted greeting cards for all occasions. Inspired by elements of her Persian culture and heritage, Maryam draws inspiration from daily conversations, observations, lifelong memories and journeys of her life.

She currently resides in Southern California and works as an artist and a Health Navigator at OMID Multicultural Institute for Development.