Influenced by human-geographical narratives, Land/s questions the physicality of borders within nature and instead attempts to make connections between two versions of “home.” Geographic borders and boundaries are imposed by humans and often politically charged. Dashti believes nature transcends the cultural and political issues that can divide us and that we carry an idea of what “home” is with us wherever we go. As an immigrant, she sees that the inherent link between nature and human migration connects the various constructs of “home” and “displacement,” and that we tend to seek familiarity within the unfamiliar. By strategically placing a photograph of a landscape within a separate physical landscape, Dashti is addressing the ways in which immigrants seek out familiarity in nature and reconstruct new hybrid topographies that combine elements from “home” within an unfamiliar space. Dashti’s process essentially creates a portrait of two interpretations of “home,” combining them into a singular, yet layered, representation.

Curator: Julie Ganas