Next Wave x ACE Open

Elyas Alavi is a visual artist and poet based in Adelaide. Alavi was born in Afghanistan, moved to Iran as a child following the intensification of war in his homeland and in late 2007 he moved to Australia as refugee at risk.

Alavi graduated from a Masters by Research (Visual Arts) at the University of South Australia in 2015 and has exhibited nationally and internationally including IFA Gallery (Kabul), Niyavaran Gallery (Tehran), Jugglers Art Space (Brisbane), The Walker Street Gallery (Melbourne) and CACSA Project Space and Fontanelle Gallery (Adelaide).

Alavi also is also an internationally renowned poet. He published three poetry books in Iran and Afghanistan. His first book I’m A Daydreamer Wolf was published in 2008 in Tehran, followed by Some Wounds in 2012 in Kabul and Hodood in 2015 in Tehran.

He regularly runs art and poetry workshops in community centres and schools in Adelaide. He visits many issues in his works, but mainly memory, displacement, exile, social justice, gender issues, separation and the human nature.