Aydin Matlabi travels the world creating narratives and stories that empower women and children. He has been working for over a decade in war zones and developing countries. During this time, he has witnessed human crisis and upheavals, pain and suffering; while, at the same time, discovering strength and humanity. 

 

Aydin Matlabi’s photography explores how departure, absence, and loss impact one's understanding of home and identity, and addresses how struggle affects people's sense of self and place. Through his portrait and landscape photography, Matlabi is in search of people’s narratives and essences.

 

As an expatriated Iranian, the question of how identity affects the people and the places he photographs remains the driving force behind the process and content of his work. Matlabi’s methods center around a conscious and sensitive approach to cultural differences, while remaining aware of the fact that although he has ties with the subjects, he cannot fully escape the binary power structure inherent in the Western gaze that influences the way he sees the world. The desire to explore the potential of portrait photography to create a space where marginalized subjects can assert and (re) fashion a sense of self is the main inspiration behind his visual.