- City
- Toronto
- Booth
- Nathan Phillips Square
Booth 47
Melika Saeeda
I was born and raised in Iran. I began painting at Tehran Art University, where I was drawn to the storytelling power of traditional Persian painting, particularly Persian Miniatures, with their flatness, detailed textures, and bold compositions that feel surprisingly contemporary. After earning my BFA, I studied Graphic Design at TM University in Tehran while working as a freelance illustrator. Over the past ten years, I’ve illustrated more than 30 children’s books in Iran and Turkey, always trying to tell my story through my visual language, a picture language that goes beyond words.
My works have been exhibited in Iran, the Emirates, South Korea, and here in Canada. Themes of freedom, identity, and social justice, especially about my home country, are central to my practice. Art has become the space where I process, question, and reflect on these lived experiences.
My latest series "Sisterhood" is inspired by the quiet strength of women, mothers, friends, and strangers, whose presence, resilience, and care have shaped my life. From Iran to Canada, I’ve witnessed how women stand together, support one another, and build spaces of healing and hope. This series is a tribute to those unspoken bonds, to feminine power, and to the way we carry each other through times of change and challenge. Using acrylic on Canvas, I explore these themes through elegant lines, a limited color palette, and figurative compositions that continue my journey of storytelling, this time through the shared language of sisterhood.
