About
Russell (Rasoul) Fadavi is an Iranian-American fine art painter whose work explores memory, emotion, and the human condition. Rooted in a life shaped by exile, resilience, and hope, his paintings reflect an ongoing search for freedom, belonging, and connection.
Blending abstract realism with figurative representation, Fadavi uses the human form as a vessel of beauty, vulnerability, and strength. His intuitive approach transforms personal experience into universal expression, inviting viewers to feel rather than interpret. His work carries a quiet emotional presence—gentle yet powerful—marked by empathy, sincerity, and restraint.
Fadavi holds an MFA from the Academy of Art University in San Francisco and works primarily in oil and charcoal. He lives and works in Los Angeles, California
Artist Statement
Art, for me, is an act of survival, reflection, and connection. My practice is inseparable from lived experience—shaped by exile, resilience, and the ongoing search for freedom after leaving Iran in 1996 and eventually resettling in the United States in 2009. These experiences continue to inform the emotional and visual language of my work.
Working primarily in oil painting and charcoal drawing, I blend abstract realism with figurative representation. The human body appears as a recurring vessel of vulnerability, strength, beauty, and love—an embodiment of emotional and psychological depth rather than a mere subject.
My process is intuitive and responsive, guided by memory, sensation, and feeling. Painting becomes a visual diary: at times a space for reflection and transformation, at others a quiet celebration of life, intimacy, and connection. Rather than explaining, I aim to evoke—to create work that communicates through presence, form, and emotional resonance beyond words.