Born in Iran, Pari Aazami moved to the UK as a child following the 1978 Iranian Revolution. After retiring from a long and meticulous career in dentistry, she has devoted herself fully to her lifelong passions of photography and painting.
Aazami’s practice is deeply rooted in nature. Drawn to its colour, form and movement, she works at the intersection of photography and painting, allowing the two disciplines to merge organically. Her current body of work reflects this synthesis, resulting in layered, atmospheric pieces that feel both intuitive and contemplative.
Her artistic influences include Gustav Klimt, Paul Klee, Vincent van Gogh, Paul Signac, Anne Palmer and Peter Doig, artists whose sensitivity to colour, structure and emotion resonate strongly within her own practice.
Photography holds a personal significance for Azami, inherited from her father, whose leather-cased Rollup Automatic camera remains a cherished connection to her childhood. His careful eye for composition and detail — shaped by his career as a surgeon — continues to inform her work today. In tribute, she signs her artworks using her maiden name.
Her creative spirit is equally shaped by her mother, who has been her greatest teacher, supporter and artistic companion. Together they share a deep appreciation for the natural world, from wildflowers to shifting landscapes.
At the heart of Aazami’s current project is a desire to reawaken the inner child — a space of imagination, curiosity and wonder. It is this sensibility, nurtured throughout her life, that continues to guide her artistic journey.
Are you self taught or did you attend art school?
I am self taught. I have been making art from a very young age and studied art at GCSE, O level and A level, but I did not attend art school. I come from an Asian family where pursuing a stable profession was strongly encouraged, so art was never seen as a viable career path. I went on to train and work as a dentist, which in hindsight makes sense. Dentistry relies heavily on manual dexterity, precision and aesthetics alongside the medical side. Working with my hands and creating has always been central to who I am, even when art was not my profession.
How would you describe your artistic style?
I describe my work as abstract realism. I take photographs of small natural forms, often lichen or organic growth found on stone, bark or brick. These are real, existing subjects, but I enlarge them so familiar scale and boundaries disappear. I then hand gild metal leaf onto the image to bring forward structures and layers that might otherwise be overlooked. The subject remains real, but through scale and abstraction it becomes something new.
Can you tell us about your artistic process?
My process begins with walking, observing and photographing. I am drawn to small, quiet details in nature. Once printed, the photograph becomes the foundation of the work. I spend a long time simply looking before I apply any metal leaf. Gilding is a slow and deliberate process and I use it to reveal rather than decorate, highlighting forms that already exist within the image. Restraint is just as important as intuition.
Is narrative a key element in your work?
There is no fixed narrative imposed on the work. I prefer the image to speak for itself. Any sense of story emerges through the viewer’s experience rather than through something I dictate. What matters more to me is creating a feeling, a pause, a sense of light or a moment of quiet connection.
Who are your favourite artists and what draws you to their work?
I am drawn to many different forms of art. Sometimes it is work with no obvious meaning, where colour, texture or form simply resonates. Other times it is work that is layered and thought provoking. I do not believe art has to do one thing. As long as it stimulates us emotionally or mentally in some way, it has value.
Who or what inspires your art?
Nature is my greatest inspiration. I genuinely see beauty everywhere, often in very small overlooked details. I can get overly excited about things most people walk past, so I sometimes have to rein that in slightly. But that sense of wonder is what fuels my work and keeps me curious.
Where is your studio located and what is the environment like?
I do not have a studio in the traditional sense. I work from a very small room that used to be my dental office. I extended the work surface to allow space for gilding. It is messy but an organised mess, and everything I need is within arm’s reach. The room looks out onto the garden and surrounding countryside and when I look up from my work that view is grounding and endlessly inspiring.
Do you have any studio rituals or habits that help you create?
I tend to work intuitively rather than following strict routines. I spend a lot of time looking and sitting with the image before making any decisions. I also rely on natural light and the quiet rhythm of working slowly, which suits the process of gilding.
What projects or artworks are you currently working on?
I am continuing to develop my series based on lichen and organic growth, exploring scale, light and layered surfaces through photography and metal leaf. I am also gradually expanding the ambition and size of the works as space allows.
How has your style evolved over time?
I began with watercolour, which often looked like oil painting. I then moved to oils, which somehow looked like watercolour. Eventually photography became central to my practice. Gilding metal leaf feels like a form of painting, so in many ways I have merged my love of photography and painting into one process.
What materials or mediums do you prefer to work with and why?
Photography and hand gilded metal leaf are my primary materials. I am drawn to metal leaf because of how it responds to light. It creates a subtle three dimensional quality and shifts depending on where the viewer stands, which makes the work feel alive.
What challenges do you often face in your work and how do you overcome them?
One of the biggest challenges is restraint. I often love the photograph as it is, so I spend a long time deciding how much gilding is enough. The challenge is to honour the image rather than overwhelm it, revealing its layers without imposing my own story. I work intuitively and try to stay honest rather than creating what I think others might want.
What do you hope viewers take away from your art?
I hope my work brings a sense of light, calm and quiet happiness. The world can be overwhelming, and if my work offers someone a moment of pause, even briefly, then it has done its job. I believe that seeing beauty makes us more inclined to protect it and perhaps a little kinder to one another.
How do you handle creative block or burnout?
I have been fortunate not to experience creative block, but I have experienced burnout, mainly from the demands of promotion and visibility on social media. The constant need to create content can be exhausting. I try to counter this by travelling with my husband and spending time with my two daughters. When I am away, I make a conscious effort to step back from social media, although it is not easy. I am still figuring out how to balance it.
Has your cultural or personal background influenced your art?
My background has influenced my path into art rather than the imagery itself. Coming from a family where stability was prioritised meant art remained something I was always drawn to but came back to later in life. That long relationship with making has shaped how I work now, with patience and commitment.
Do you collaborate with other artists or creative communities?
Yes, through joint exhibitions and shared projects. I feel incredibly lucky to have found a creative community that is kind, generous and supportive. Other artists continually inspire and educate me. It is a space where curiosity and enthusiasm are shared freely.
What advice would you give to aspiring artists?
Keep making work and stay true to yourself. Create what makes you happy first. Not everyone will like your art and that is not a failure or a reflection of your worth. You do not like every artwork you see either. When someone does connect with your work, it makes the journey all the more meaningful. Keep going.
Where can people view or purchase your art?
My work can be viewed through exhibitions, selected galleries and online via my website and social platforms.
Where do you see your work heading in the future?
My long term dream is to create a very large scale work, something around three metres by three metres. It would require space, resources and time, possibly a year or more to make, so for now it lives very happily in my imagination. I imagine a monumental mixed media piece inspired by lichen, where light and reflection envelop the viewer. I am inspired by works such as Yayoi Kusama’s Infinity Rooms, where you feel small, humbled and quietly connected to something much bigger than yourself. I would love to create a work that offers that same sense of wonder through layered photography and metal leaf. Whether I manage it or not remains to be seen, but I think it is important to have a dream that feels slightly out of reach. And if anyone out there feels curious, brave or just a little bit mad enough to want to collaborate on something like this with me, I would love to hear from them. It would be a wonderful adventure.
For more in formation, visit: https://pariaazami.co.uk