Biography
Cyrus Mahboubian (b. 1986, London, UK) is a British artist known for his contemplative approach to photography and continued use of analogue materials, especially polaroid. He has stated that his intentionally slow process is a response to the increasing influence of technology in our lives.
Mahboubian's work has been exhibited in solo and group shows in London, Paris, Los Angeles, Dubai, Cairo, Moscow and Istanbul. Notable exhibitions include Fotografia Europea festival, Italy, and Pitt Rivers Museum, Oxford. His first photobook VISCERA was published in 2019, with book launches at Sotheby's and London Art Book Fair at Whitechapel Gallery. He has led workshops at Tate Britain and The Photographers' Gallery.
Mahboubian’s work is on permanent display at four international Soho House locations and has been featured by Photomonitor, Culture Trip, Global Citizen, The Guardian, BBC, Tatler and LA Weekly. His studio is based in Trafalgar Square, Central London.
“… over the years I discovered that walking and making photographs in quiet, remote landscapes was deeply fulfilling and provided an escape from the fast pace of life in a big city. This was enhanced by working with a material that’s limited… Working in this way – with extreme focus and close observation of your subject – photography becomes a kind of meditation.“
– quote from an interview published by Photomonitor, August 2019
CV
Education
B.A. University of Bristol (2005-2008)
Selected Art Fairs & Festivals
11th Fotografia Europea - ‘The via Emilia. Roads, Journeys, Borders’, Reggio Emilia, Italy (6 May - 10 July 2016)
SCOPE, De Re Gallery booth, Miami Beach, USA (1-6 December 2015)
Photo LA, De Re Gallery booth, L.A., USA (15-18 January 2015)
Moscow Photo Salon, Artwin Gallery booth, Moscow, Russia (11-15 September 2013)
Selected Solo Exhibitions & Projects
‘About Time’ at Artvisor, Mayfair, London, UK (10 May - 7 June 2022)
‘Polaroids/Composites’ - curated by Nico Epstein - at Artvisor, Mayfair, London, UK (9 October - 13 December 2020)
‘VISCERA’ book signing at the London Art Book Fair, Whitechapel Gallery, London, UK (7 September 2019); book launch at Sotheby’s, New Bond St., London, UK (12 May 2019)
‘Nomad’ at The Edit, Al Wasl Rd., Jumeirah, Dubai, UAE (12 November 2018 - 17 January 2019)
‘Murmur’ - curated by Alison Bignon - at Galerie Nivet-Carzon, rue Geoffroy l’Angevin, Paris, France (13-17 April 2016)
‘Mulholland: Polaroids from L.A.’ - curated by Alison Bignon - at Galerie Nivet-Carzon, rue Geoffroy l’Angevin, Paris, France (11-15 November 2015)
Screening of video work 'Un Hôte' at Edge of Arabia, Battersea, London, UK (11 August 2015)
‘Muse’ at De Re Gallery, Melrose Ave., L.A., USA (18 September - 22 October 2014)
A photographic installation in response to the play ‘The Body of an American’ at: Royal & Derngate, Guildhall Road, Northampton, UK (27 February - 8 March 2014); and at Gate Theatre, Notting Hill, London, UK (16 January - 14 February 2014)
‘Instant Exposure: The Physical Print’ at Rich Mix, Bethnal Green Rd., London, UK (6-15 June 2013)
Selected Group Exhibitions
‘What Are You Looking At?’ - curated by Marie Obegi - at Hobhouse Court, Whitcomb St. Trafalgar Square, London, UK (22 March - 12 May 2024)
‘murmuration’ - curated by David Mumby - at Cromwell Place, South Kensington, London, UK (6-11 February 2024)
‘Crossing’ - curated by Maliheh Zafarnezhad - at V.O Studios, Angel Square, London, UK (19-22 August 2022)
‘ASSEMBLE’ at V.O Studios, Conduit St., Mayfair, London, UK (14 January - 10 February 2022)
‘The Cheating Hand of Randomness’ at Gypsum Gallery, Cairo, Egypt (16 December 2021 - 31 January 2022)
‘natura-lism: The Age of Digital Nature’ curated by Presenza, online exhibition (13 November - 31 December 2020)
‘Lande: The Calais “Jungle” and Beyond’ at Pitt Rivers Museum, University of Oxford, UK (27 April - 29 November 2019)
‘Botanica’ at Tristan Hoare, Fitzroy Sq., London, UK (17 May - 5 July 2019)
'MIGRATE' at Amastan Hotel, Paris, France (8-11 November 2018); at LCB Depot, Leicester, UK (18-23 June 2018); at St Cross College, University of Oxford, UK (15-25 February 2018); and at Omeara, London, UK (29 August - 2 September 2017)
'Alchemical Imagination' curated by Artvisor at LIBRARY, St. Martin's Lane, London, UK (7 October - 6 December 2017)
Summer Group Show at Arthill Gallery, North End Rd., London, UK (6 July - 1 September 2017)
‘Beyond Borders’ at Blain|Southern - in aid of Unicef, Hanover Sq., London, UK (16-21 May 2016)
‘Spaces, Contexts, Habitats’ at Palazzo Biscari, Catania, Sicily, Italy (30 June - 3 July 2015)
‘Blue Nudes’ at De Re Gallery, Melrose Ave., L.A., USA (28 May - 27 June 2015)
‘Échos’ at Galerie Anne et Just Jaeckin, rue Guénégaud, Paris, France (3-30 December 2014)
‘Parallel Threads’ at Ekavart Gallery, Ritz Carlton Hotel, Istanbul, Turkey (31 October - 23 November 2013)
‘Young Masters’ at Sphinx Fine Art, Kensington Church St., London, UK (8-23 October 2013)
‘Analogue: The Photograph in an Age of Digital Reproduction’ at The Jam Factory, Oxford, UK (13 August - 29 September 2013)
‘External: New Art from Further East’ at The Redchurch Street Gallery, London, UK (25-31 October 2010)
Selected Talks
Panel discussion ‘What Are You Looking At?’ at Hobhouse Court, Whitcomb St. Trafalgar Square, London, UK (11 April 2024)
Panel discussion ‘Creating Impact with Culture’ hosted by Artiq, at Fidelio, Clerkenwell Rd., London, UK (23 February 2023)
postponed Panel discussion ‘Art is the Highest Form of Hope’ hosted by James’ Place, at Tate Liverpool, UK (28 April 2020)
In conversation with Flora Alexandra Ogilvy at Soho Farmhouse, Oxfordshire, UK (1 November 2019)
Artist talk at Sketch, Conduit St., London, UK (1 October 2019)
Artist talk at Christie’s, King St., London, UK (11 February 2019)
Panel discussion 'Art for Everyone' at St Cross College, University of Oxford, UK (17 January 2018)
Panel discussion ‘Artist as Entrepreneur’ hosted by AucArt, at Shoreditch House, London, UK (3 October 2016)
Artist talk at the 11th Fotografia Europea, Reggio Emilia, Italy (8 May 2016)
Artist talk for ‘Muse’ solo exhibition, De Re Gallery, Melrose Ave., LA, USA (28 September 2014)
Artist talk for ‘Instant Exposure’ solo exhibition, Rich Mix, Bethnal Green Rd., London, UK (11 June 2013)
Selected Workshops Led
Maison Pan - for The Photographers’ Gallery Patrons, London, UK (10 April 2024)
Soho Farmhouse, Oxfordshire, UK (1 November 2019)
Haslemere Educational Museum, Surrey, UK (6 June 2015)
The Photographers’ Gallery, London, UK (13 October 2013)
Tate Britain - for Crossway Foundation, London, UK (22 August 2013)
Haslemere Educational Museum, Surrey, UK (2 February 2013)
Tate Britain, London, UK (7 July 2012)
Residencies
Villa Lena Foundation, Tuscany, Italy (October 2018)
Allenheads Contemporary Arts, Northumberland, UK (March 2015)
Artist-in-Residence at the Gate Theatre supported by Chelsea Arts Club Trust, alongside the production ‘The Body of an American’, London, UK (February - March 2014)