Referring to her native Iran, Parastou Forouhar’s work examines subjects including Islamic fundamentalism, women’s rights and the structure of democracy. Works such as Tausenundein Tag depict violent scenes of torture and human rights abuses and have been described as simultaneously poignant and powerful. Though thematically broad, Forouhar’s autobiographical method nevertheless results in works which are highly personal. 'The Documentation' (2013) records the artist’s futile search for those behind the murder of her parents- the well-known political dissidents Parvareh and Dariush Forouhar.

  

 Born in Iran in 1962, Parastou Forouhar currently lives and works in Germany. She completed an undergraduate degree at the University of Tehran, and was awarded grants to continue her studies at Kunstlerhaus Schloss, Balmoral and Villa Massimo, Rome. In 2005 she received a Master’s degree from Hochschul Für Gestaltung in Offenbach, Germany. Previous solo exhibitions include Law Warschaw Gallery, Macalester College, Minnesota (2013); Fürth Art Gallery, Fürth (2012); Karin Sachs Gallery, Munich (2011); Fondazione Merz, Turin (2011); RH Gallery, New York (2010); Leighton House Museum, London (2010); Azad Gallery, Tehran (2009); and Fondazione Pastificio Cerere, Rome (2007). Recent group exhibitions include The Mattress Factory, Pittsburg (2012); Azad Art Gallery, Tehran (2012); Frankfurt Museum of Modern Art (2011); IFA Gallery, Berlin/ Stuttgart (2011); Beirut Exhibition Centre (2011); and Brisbane Gallery of Modern Art (2010). Forouhar is also co-curator for Treibsand, a magazine for contemporary art in Tehran.