Madihe Gharibi (b. 1995, Iran) is a concept-based artist who works with various mediums spanning from performance to installation and theater. Her practice is rooted in time-based and live art, and her work can be experienced from galleries to theater stages and conversations surrounding films.
Before moving to Norway, she worked in Iran as a playwright and theater director and was involved in numerous teaching projects aimed at training female teenagers in writing and theater. In Norway, she expanded her practice into new mediums, and continues to incorporate teaching projects as a part of her practice.
Both her writing background and studies in Fine Art have led Madihe to tell stories through different mediums, with storytelling as her primary mode of expression. Her art is deeply intertwined with her personal experiences and socio-political circumstances as an Iranian woman, often blurring the boundaries between reality and fiction.
Madihe's diasporic journey, which began in 2019, has played a profound role in her artistic development. This journey can be divided into three phases. The first phase marked her initial transition, exploring the differences and contrasts between Iranian and Norwegian society (e.g., Dual homeness and At the door with no knocker). The second phase focused on connecting with Norwegian society by emphasizing commonalities and blending distinct identities (e.g., Museum of Still-Others). The third and ongoing phase involves dealing with the challenges of adapting to a new society, akin to the concept of translation, which was central to her recent project, Carry Across.
Currently, Madihe is based in Oslo and working on a theater-installation project, which has been invited by VOLT, a curatorial project based in Bergen, Norway. The project is going to be realised in Summer 2025.
Madihe holds a Bachelor’s degree in Dramatic Literature from the University of Tehran and a Master’s in Fine Art from the University of Bergen. Her work has been exhibited in Iceland, Denmark, and Norway, including venues such as Hordaland Kunstsenter, Bergen Kunsthall, and Fotogalleriet.