Leila Heller Gallery presents All in the Family, an exhibition that brings together the work of three artists connected not only by a shared cultural background but also by familial ties: Farshid Shafiey, Atieh Sohrabi, and Baran Shafiey. Open until 5 July 2026, the show offers a rare opportunity to examine how artistic sensibilities evolve across generations, revealing both continuities and departures within a family of creative practitioners.
Through painting, illustration, and narrative imagery, All in the Family explores themes of memory, identity, imagination, and everyday life. Rather than emphasising stylistic uniformity, the exhibition highlights the distinct visual languages developed by each artist. It unfolds as a conversation between different generations and perspectives, demonstrating how shared experiences and cultural references can produce remarkably diverse artistic outcomes. The works on view create an intimate and compelling exploration of the ways personal histories intersect with broader cultural narratives.
The show’s title points to the familial relationships at its core, but it also suggests a broader understanding of artistic kinship. Viewers are invited to consider how creative ideas are transmitted, transformed, and reimagined over time. The dialogue between the artists extends beyond biography and becomes a reflection on the role of memory and storytelling in shaping visual culture.
A central figure in the exhibition, Farshid Shafiey is famous for his multidisciplinary practice that spans painting, illustration, graphic design, and animation. His work is characterised by a playful and experimental approach; it often blends elements of narrative, humour, and fantasy. Shafiey embraces artistic freedom, allowing ideas to move fluidly between different mediums and modes of expression.
His paintings and illustrations frequently evoke the imaginative world of storytelling, where ordinary situations become infused with curiosity and wonder. This openness to experimentation has made his practice an important point of reference within the exhibition, offering insight into the creative environment that connects the three artists.
Atieh Sohrabi‘s artworks reveal a different sensibility. Her paintings often possess a quiet, contemplative quality and draw viewers into intimate scenes populated by figures, flowers, birds, and natural motifs. Many of the exhibited works are modest in scale, yet they convey a remarkable sense of emotional depth.
Through carefully balanced compositions and a restrained visual language, Sohrabi creates poetic spaces that celebrate moments of stillness and connection. Her art pieces seem to inhabit a realm between memory and dream, where personal experiences are transformed into universal images of beauty and introspection.
Baran Shafiey, who represents a younger generation, contributes paintings that engage directly with contemporary life while retaining a strong narrative dimension. Her works frequently depict everyday scenes and social encounters, which range from neighbourhood shops and wedding celebrations to sports activities and casual interactions.
Paintings such as Tailor Shop #1, Grocery Store #1, Soccer Practice, and A Wedding I Remember demonstrate an interest in documenting the textures of daily experience while simultaneously exploring the emotional resonance of memory. Baran’s paintings filter familiar situations through a distinctive visual vocabulary that combines observation with imagination. The resulting images feel at once specific and universal, capturing moments that resonate beyond their immediate context.
One of the exhibition’s greatest strengths lies in the way the three practices illuminate one another. Farshid’s spirit of experimentation, Atieh’s lyrical introspection, and Baran’s narrative engagement with contemporary life create a rich and dynamic visual dialogue. The differences between their approaches are as revealing as their points of connection. The artists demonstrate how creativity can be both inherited and reinvented, shaped by shared experiences while remaining profoundly individual.
The show also reflects broader questions about cultural memory and identity. All three artists draw upon personal experiences and familiar environments, yet their works avoid nostalgia in favour of active reinterpretation. Whether through intimate portraits, imaginative illustrations, or scenes drawn from everyday life, they prompt viewers to consider how memories are preserved, altered, and passed from one generation to the next. The family becomes a framework through which larger cultural and artistic narratives can be explored.
In bringing the three artists together, All in the Family offers more than a survey of related artistic practices. It presents a thoughtful examination of the creative bonds that connect generations while celebrating the individuality of each voice. The show reveals how artistic traditions are continually renewed through dialogue, experimentation, and personal expression. Viewers encounter a family united by art yet distinguished by uniquely personal visions, creating an exhibition that is as intimate as it is engaging.
To get more information about All in the Family, please visit the official web page of the exhibition.
In addition, you might be interested in attending Interwoven, a group show at the House of Arts.
