HOME: Conversations with Ourselves

Komeil Zarin in conversation with Amal Haj Sleman on February 19, 2021

As part of our virtual HOME work, which launched in 2020, we are interviewing refugees that have resettled to the United States, including both friends and family that are based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, as well as those that remain overseas. These interviews are reflections of relationships and conversations that we continue to have long after resettlement; they explore issues that our refugee friends and family members continue to face as they remain in their country of origin or interim country.

About Komeil Zarin
Komeil Zarin, an Iranian-born artist, began his artistic journey as a young child painting alongside his father, Mohammad Yousefi Zarin, a painter, Persian calligrapher, and musician. Since then he has continually explored words, music, mediums, and styles in his search for deeper connections – with himself as well as with others.

As one who is exiled yet forever connected to his homeland, waiting here yet always looking beyond, Zarin’s work questions our perceived notions of identity, belonging, boundaries, and realities. For Zarin, beyond relationships that are formed with people, there exist relationships with Knowledge, with Time, and with Nature. Zarin’s paintings are a result of his investigations within these realms. Through what is ordinary, Zarin strives to see deeper into the world, in order to find what it means to be.

Learn more about Komeil Zarin's work here:
https://www.facebook.com/komeilyousefi.art
https://www.facebook.com/KomeilArtClass

About Amal Haj Sleman
Amal is a spoken word poet from Syria currently based in Malaysia. They have performed at the International Islamic University of Malaysia, University of Malaya, and they have been featured at open mics under Nose InkQbate and Jack it. They were featured at JALAN DALAM Open Mic in Malaysia and Spoke & Bird in Singapore. They came in second at the Queerlah Lumpur Poetry Slam 2019 and were crowned champion at Merdekarya Fest 2019. They had a reading showcase for the Voices program for women writers at Georgetown Literary Festival 2019, Penang, Malaysia. Their piece, ‘A Damascus Jasmine,’ was featured and published in the Voices: Reflections 2019 chapbook. Amal is a co-organizer for an open mic platform (Poetry Jam Penang).

Learn more about Amal’s work here: https://instagram.com/miemo135/