PORTRAIT / FIGURATIVE NOMINEE

Description and Concept: "The Record Keeper" is a double self-portrait that forms part of The Red Blanket Project, a collection of portrait paintings, drawings, and audio works depicting Canadian Armed Forces veterans whose lives are affected by PTSD. This project is inspired by their healing journeys and serves as a platform to share their stories with a broader audience. This piece reflects my role as a "keeper" of their stories—a responsibility born out of the trust they placed in me when sharing their deeply personal experiences. Rather than retelling their narratives, I have chosen to embody and preserve them until the time comes for them to resurface. The vision for this painting originated from a dream in which I swam alongside a whale—a symbol of record-keeping in Indigenous North American traditions. Whales are often regarded as swimming libraries, carrying the collective memory of Mother Earth and connecting us to the universal mind of the Great Spirit. The blue dress in the painting mirrors the hues of the whale in my dream, emphasizing the act of becoming a vessel for these stories. The composition features a conversation between two versions of myself, symbolizing introspection and the transmission of these narratives from one part of my being to another. The reflective silver-leaf background invites the viewer into the work, drawing them into the impermanence and fluidity of the experiences portrayed. This reflective quality serves as a metaphor for the transient nature of memory and healing. The cuneiform script in the background and as a tattoo on my arm is derived from the Cyrus Cylinder, often regarded as the first charter of human rights. It connects themes of freedom, equality, and justice from my Persian heritage to the veterans’ stories of resilience and recovery. The red backdrop, a nod to The Red Blanket Project, represents strength, passion, and the enduring journey of healing. This painting is not only a deeply personal response to the veterans’ experiences but also an exploration of universal themes of memory, identity, and the interconnectedness of human stories.